


"With Her Real Family"

by orphan_account



Series: On Hiatus [1]
Category: The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: Adopted Children, Adopted Mother, Adoption, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Aunt-Niece Relationship, Auntie Lilith Clawthorne, Camilia Noceda has a girlfriend, Child Abuse, Contains some Spanish, Crying, Demon Realm, Eda Clawthorne is Luz Noceda's Parent, Emotional Hurt, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/F, Found Family, Good Parent Eda Clawthorne, Human Realm, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Luz Noceda Needs a Hug, Luz has a little brothre, Luz has a third mother, Mama Eda, Mama Eda Clawthorne, Mentor/Protégé, Mother Liliath, Mother Lilith CLawthorne, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Panic Attacks, Parental Love, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Post-Episode: s01e19 Young Blood Old Souls, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Eda Clawthorne, Protective Lilith Clawthorne, Sad, Sad Luz Noceda, Sad with a Happy Ending, The Boiling Isles (The Owl House), adopted family, bad homelife, blood doesn't make family, serious relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:28:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 24,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27640738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: After five months of being trapped in the Demon Realm with no way home and missing her Mami, Luz is overjoyed when she is able to return to the Human Realm. But after so many adventures with her friends and being with people who love her, she is unprepared to find her grandfather, a man who mother refused to let her meet, to have full custody of her, frightening. Even worse, unlike the Boiling Isles, there is no one to have her back and leaves her to be treated like a prisoner. With her once bright and optimistic self fading away from her sudden shift in home life and parental love, Luz is reeling as her life takes a drastic turn.Unknown to her, her former parental figures, is also beginning to worry when Owlbert returns one too many times with no news about the child who came under their care. Doing their best, with their limited resources in the Human Realm, to find where their dear Luz has disappeared to. It is mostly by pure luck and the watchful eyes of the older Blight Twins that they find the child after many hours of searching. But after seeing her downtrodden and mute, they can’t bring themselves to leave her behind, not even when she is certain that she doesn’t deserve to have her found family again.
Relationships: Amity Blight & Luz Noceda, Camila Noceda & Luz Noceda, Camila Noceda & Orginal female character, Eda Clawthorne & Eda Clawthorne's Mother, Eda Clawthorne & King & Luz Noceda, Eda Clawthorne & Luz Noceda, Eda Clawthorne & Owlbert, King & Luz Noceda, Lilith Clawthorne & Luz Noceda, Luz Noceda & Original Character(s)
Series: On Hiatus [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2161092
Comments: 51
Kudos: 137





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Okay. So this is one of my more darker fanfics to be written and posted on here. While The Owl House has a viewership of a broad range, this would be more for the older audience as it will cover mature topics. But if that doesn’t deter you, I recommend you keep reading this chapter.

Luz Noceda knew that Eda and Lilith were worried when they opened the portal. The last attempt, several weeks prior, had ended poorly. King and her were still finding random pieces of metal around the else and the ten-year-old still had bandages to change daily from the impact of the explosion. SO, while it appeared to be hopeless, she could already picture her running and throwing her arms around her Mami.

There would be tears and then lectures. Mami had must been scared sickly with her disappearing for five months with little to know contact. But, once the lecture was done, she knew that there would be late nights of watching anime together and ordering Chinese in celebration of their reunion.

While the thought of seeing her mother made her jubilant, the while situation of being trapped in the Demon Realm wasn’t as bad as what others had thought. With Eda only being seven years older than her and Lilith her two full time positions as a teacher and Amity’s mentor and Covenness of the Emperor’s Coven, there was many times she was left to her own needs. While there were many times she ate burnt good or took baths in icy water, she had grown up to match the maturity of her friends who were two and four years her seniors. During the days, when her friends made her stay overnight, their parents made sure that “she got to act like a kid for a few hours.” While it felt weird to have someone to coddle her by making her meals and making sure she had warm water to take a bath, she never turned down spending time with her friends. 

Her friends, Willow, Amity, and Gus, always knew how quickly she had grown up in the five months and knew their time was limited, causing them to spend much time as they could together. Two weeks prior, when she felt strong enough to wander away from The Owl House, Amity had convinced her parents to allow her to invite her, Gus, Willow, and Scarra for a short trip down the cost for a few days, giving her a few more memories before leaving the Isles. Being gifted by a rarity of a pollorid camera by Alador Blight, Amity’s Father, she spent many hours taking photos to remind her of the days she spent with her friends. Despite the company she kept and her bright smiles, Luz still felt a pang of homesickness when Odilia Blight, Amity’s mother, took a moment to talk to her affectionately or tell her to have fun before they left. 

Still know, with the possibility leaving the Isles for who knows how long, Luz was going to miss her friends. Knowing Amity, Gus, and Willow only for a short while, she knew they were the true friends she would never receive back in the Human Realm. It would hurt her to leave them behind when she left but with her new experience on being social, she was determined to start over and make her Mami proud. It was this thought that was a mistake. 

With her expecting to go back to living with her mother upon her return, it was the news she received and arrival of a new life that broke her. And it wasn’t until months later, under the tender hands and loving murmurs of Lilith and Eda that she begun to return to her old self. 

***

When she woke up on the promised day, two days before her eleventh birthday, it was early enough that the sun had yet risen. But as she tossed and turned in her sleeping bag, she found herself unable to sleep. Instead she thought her celebrating her birthday with her Mami. Late night pizza and anime binging danced through her mind and a fond smile broadened. It was these thoughts that helped her stay in her sleeping bag until the first rays of dawn begun to reach from underneath the ragged and dusty curtains. Aware of how stiff her body was, she crawled out of her sleeping bag, careful not to disturb King as he slept, still curled up at the end where her feet had been. 

Standing up by her pillow, she stared around the room, hazel-brown eyes sparkling with unshed tears. This room, while cramped and shared with dust bunnies, had been her home for the past five months. The dresser shoved into one of the cleared corners held her scarce clothes and her few school items she kept at home, and a sketchbook that was half filled with ready-made glyphs in case there was a battle but also polloid photos she taped to the pages. Past those items, there was a few books, scavenged from Eda’s childhood books that she had been slowly working through and were close to completing. 

As she moved her gaze around the room, it wasn’t that hard for her to realize just how much things had changed. Back in the Human Realm she had a lot of materialistic possessions but now it was scarce with a few items and many being second hand and close to falling apart. She could no longer picturing herself going out shopping and buying things that she already had. Instead, Luz could see her keeping things of personal value close and out of reach of any dangers. 

Sighing wistfully, Luz turned her gaze over to the dresser in the corner. Stepping over her textbook for Abomination class, she pulled the top drawer. Inside was the few outfits that still fit her growing frame and lengthening height. One item, her blue and white stripped cat hoodie, had still survived, and she was relieve. This had been the last item, her father, Kahkli Noceda, had given to her before he passed away when she had been seven. Changing out of her pajamas and slipping on a pair of jeans and a shirt of Amity’s she had forgotten a few days ago, she slipped her Cat Hoodie on.

Packing her pajamas into the drawer, she put on her shoes, a pair of second hand black shoes, and tied them. As she ran a comb through her tangled hair, Luz realized it was getting long and was now down to her mid back instead of barely passing her ears. Tying her hair into a pony tail, Luz slipped her necklace, a pendant that had the Clawthorne crest molded into her, around her neck. As she cross the living room, the ten-year-old couldn’t help but feel have a bounce in her step as she realized that if everything went right, by this time tomorrow, she would be listening to the long, rambling lectures of her mother at the dinner table. 

For the first time that she could remember, Luz couldn’t actually wait to hear her mother lecturing her and watching her like a Hawk. Being lectured or under a watchful eye wasn’t something that Lilith or Eda was that good at. They were more letting her learn from her own mistakes or intervening and punishing her when they thought it would be too much for her. 

***

“I get to go home! I get to go home!” Bouncing down the stairs and giving into her childish side for the first time in weeks, ten-year-old Luz Noceda chanted excitedly as she stopped in front of her mentor, Eda Clawthorne, and her older sister, Lilith Clawthorne, who both bore a look of amusement. While it was painful for them to see the young girl so excited about leaving their care. It was understandable about wanting to be with her mother when her birthday happened in the next few days. “I have so much o tell Mami about making friends with Amity, Gus, Willow, Emira, and Edric, and then going on adventures with you two and King. I don’ even know where to start once I can tell her.”

“Kiddo, if you don’t calm down,’ her mentor and her younger paternal figure, Eda Clawthorne, began from where she sat next to the roaring woodstove with her morning cup of Apple Blood in her arms. “You are going to tire yourself ou before you even get back to the Human Realm. I don’t think your mother would be that happy to see you when you are exhausted.”

Putting on a playful pout and plopping down onto the bench next to Lilith, the soon to be eleven=year-old stared at where their miniscule breakfast, Boiling Isles version of Ramen and sliced Blood Beets and pan fried vamphaen, a blue fish like creature, sat on a big platter. With Lilith now spending the last two weeks helping to rebuild the portal and taking time away from doing her duties as Covenness of the Emperor’s Coven and Eda, struggling more with her business, after residents learned she was raising a human apprentice and turned away from buying from her, their small savings had been used up paying for a new uniform for Luz that she would never wear and prices went on, money was tighter than ever had been before. There were many times where they had only wild edibles to eat for days, when they ate together that is, and Luz no longer age lunch provided by Heide with the prices going up, and her 75k scholarship no longer covered it.

“It will be a few hours still, darling.” Lilith began to serve the meal, pausing to give Luz’s bigger pieces of Vamphaen. Once everyone had a share of the breakfast, silence fell over the house as they ate. “While we are finishing the last few things, how about you spend the time saying good bye to your friend. I have no doubt that your mother will be letting you out of her sight for a few months, Luz.”

Swallowing the dry and burnt piece of Vamphaen, she gave a nod before taking a sip of her water. “I might be able to see Gus for a few minutes but the others are busy today,” she explained through a mouthful of thick, heavy noodles. “I was just expecting to hang around the shack today or help with the chores before attempting for me to return to the Human Realm.”

“Enjoy the time you have left here, Kiddo.” Eda took the seat beside King’s highchair, beginning to finish her Appleblood and eating her meager helping of the breakfast. “How about you pack your things and spend the rest of your time here with King.”

Looking at where the Canine Demon, already finishing his share of food sat in his highchair patiently waiting for the others to finish before returning to where Luz and him had slept together the past five months. “We can reread the last few chapters of your Good Witch Azura books, Luz,” he suggested, small tail hitting his seat. “Or we can slowly pack your bag to make sure you don’t forget anything when the time comes.”

Finishing her last bite and regretfully placing her fork down onto the plate, she pushed it away, shoulders slumping. Even with the few extra bites from the meat, her stomach still pleaded for more than what was offered. “How about we go and pack, King?” she asked, giving a forced smile to Lilith and Eda who gave her an apologetic look. “Once we are done packing, we can read some Good Witch Azura books. How does that sound?”

“That sounds like a good idea!” Slithering out to land on the ground, the canine demon dashed away from the kitchen and in the direction where their shared bedroom was. 

“Go and have fun, Kiddo.” Eda began to gather their dishes and carried them over to the wash bin. Placing them inside, she went to grab the pot of boiling water that she had heated up on the stove. “Lilith or I will come to retrieve you when we think we have everything ready.”

“It should only be two or three hours,” Lilith offered her, pushing the bench out slightly. “It shouldn’t take that long.”

Luz gave a curt nod as she got off the bench. Bounding up the steps to where King was beginning to roll up her sleeping cocoon, she went to where she stored a box of her most important items since coming to live in the Boiling Isles. Pulling the box out, she carried it over to where she kept her bag, books, cloak, and few school items she kept outside of her locker. Settling it on the ground, she looked at King who had clipped the holders into place on her sleeping bag. “That’s basically it,” she said, relaxing down onto the hard wooden floor. “Most of my other things are already packed besides my school things. I’ll pack those later though.”

“What do you have in there?” King curled up on her lap, peering at the box that lay in front of her. 

“I have the important items that I gathered over my stay in the Boiling Iles.” Luz smiled fondly as she opened the flap, staring at the items inside. “While I know that Mami can’t find them, I still want to bring them with so I can remember all the fun times that I have had here with you, Eda, Lilith, and everyone else.”

“Do you have the pictures from the one carnival?” King perked up, ears erect and alert. The ones that you took with all four of us at that one scroll both just before we left?”

It wasn’t hard for her to recall that night longingly. While it had been crazy with them getting shrunken and almost eaten alive by the wild animals of the Boiling Isles, it was also one of her first official outings with Willow and Gus before the entire fiasco with Emperor Belos and having her only way home destroyed. It was that night and many others showed her an example of how true friends are supposed to act. Nothing like her past interactions her “childhood friends” Tiffany and Jackson in the Human Realm. They were her own Boschas but unlike in this realm, she would have no friends or anyone backing her up once she started the seventh eighth grade upon returning. 

“They are in the envelope with the other pictures that I gained during the last five months,” she continued, pulling out a yellowing parchment that was starting to bulge at its seams. Opening it revealed five or six dozens worth of photos taken by her cheap polloid camera that she received before supposedly leaving for Camp Reality Check. While they were grainy and sometimes unfocused, it would the only pictures she had of her friends besides the copies of the school photos from her friend group and the big, school wide one. “They are all important to me. Once everything settles down when I return home, I plan to get a photo album and put the pictures it so it will be easier to keep track of them.”

Once she closed the envelope and glanced down at King, she realized how quiet the canine demon had gotten. “Is something wrong, King?” she asked, gently scratching him between his ears. “You are unnaturally quiet that it is scary. Do you want me to get Lilith or Eda?”

“No! No! I am fine, Luz. I just realized how much I am going to miss you.” The canine Demon stood up, turning to face her, pressing his face into the collar of her tight, blue Kitty Hoodie. “I knew that I was going to miss you, I didn’t think it would be this bad.”

“Everything will be okay,” Luz assured him, hugging him tightly. “After a few months and school is out, I can bring up having Lilith and Eda to have summer visitations with me and every other school break too.”

He sighed, ears pressing back against his skull head. “I know,” he said, nuzzling her affectionately. “Just promise you won’t forget me.”

“I won’t,” she promised, turning back to her box to go through it with King.

***

As the time drew near for Lilith and Eda to get Luz to attempt to bring her home, the ten-year-old was gathering up the last few items in her room when she came across Amity’s old Leatherman jacket form when she played Grudgby in the past. Amity gave it to her when the seasons changed from fall to winter after realizing her two guardians could afford to get her a proper coat. After one quick warmth spell and another of protection, her Leatherman jacket was for her to wear.

Holding it close to her, Luz traced her fingers over the bumpy, white thread that spelled out, “Amity Blight, #42” on the back. This was one of the few very personal items that she would have left when returning to the Isles. If she was correct, Mami would take away most of the things in her box to deter her from running away again. “Do you think Amity would object if I took this back to the Human Real with me, King? This jacket and the puzzle charm necklace are the only personal items that I will be able to hide from Mami when she goes through my bag.”

“I don’t see why not,” King voiced from where he lay on her rolled up sleeping bag with his head hanging off its side. “Amity made it very clear that she gave it to you to keep since you didn’t, or we couldn’t afford, a proper winter coat. You will just have something to wear when the season changes in the Human Realm, and something to remember the good times you had.”

Thinking that he was right, Luz carefully folded up the jacket and slid it into her personal bag where she kept her school items and a few other things that she didn’t want anyone going through. Once everything was packed, the ten-year-old zipped it up and stood up. Placing her personal bag on her back and grabbing her sleeping bag, she waited as King clambered up onto her bag, appearing like Pikachu when he was perched on his trainer’s shoulder. “Let’s go and see if Eda and Lilith are ready yet,” the hazel-brown eyed and dark titian haired preteen suggested, approaching the trap door that would lead to the main part of the house. “Or if they need help with any final touches on the way back to the Human Realm?”

King, still perched on her shoulder, gave a nod. “That sounds like a good idea,” he said, voice raspy from his crying fit earlier. “This has been stressing them out since they told you several weeks ago, Luz. Finally, if they are able to succeed, they know that you will finally be happy for you to be a place where you aren’t in constant danger or have to go with very little to no food.”

Luz nodded, thumping down the stairs to where Lilith and Eda were standing in the walkway that led to the front door. “Is everything ready?” she asked, coming to a stop at the bottom of the stairs, looking at them. “Or do you need help with preparing anything else before then?”

"We are already kiddo." Eda turned around and led out to behind the house. Once outside, Luz stopped in front of a makeshift, crudely made metal circle wedged in between two large branches of neighboring trees. "Before you go through, Luz, Lilith or I want to check it out to make sure that it’s safe. At least we will be able to have our magic to defend us if anything goes wrong. It would only be poking our head through to see if its the Human Realm.

"I understand, Eda." Luz said softly in a patient voice that she couldn't muster much longer. 

"Just a few more final finishing touches than the portal should be ready to go," Lilith assured the girl, blue spheres of pulsing light streamed from her fingertips as she focused on the ten bolts around the metal circle. "While it may work this time, sweetheart, we don't know if it will work a second time if you want to return," the pale skinned woman explained, her voice cracking as she tried to hide her sorrow, making her assuring appearance not very believable, and almost upsetting to the preteen. 

Holding back the doubtful thoughts and worry of never seeing her adopted family again, Luz approached the red line that was scarred into the ground. Stopping just at the edge of it, she watched as Eda, flying on her staff, hovered over the metal circle. "Luz, take cover," she said, finger starting to light up. "If it blows up or anything, I don't want you to get caught in the cross fire." Her voice shook and fear of the unknown shown through her stiff body. It wasn't until Luz and King had scampered to hide behind a pile of cut timber did she begin giving the potential portal power. 

The air of the clearing seem to grow heavier as a low humming and flickering light emitted from the portal. From behind the pile of timber, Luz watched with bated breathes as her hazel-brown eyes widen, excitement coursing through her body as the portal roared to life. 

"It worked! The portal actually worked!" Luz leaped up from where she was crouched, letting out a joyous laughter. "Am I going home than?"

"Let me check it out before you attempt to cross." Eda disembarked her staff and signed for Lilith to stand in front of the ten-year-old and the canine Demon. "If it’s the Human Realm, I'll return and you can return back to the Human Realm."  
Giving an excited bounce, Luz nodded as she peered around the side of Lilith as Eda hesitantly went over to the portal. Giving a quick nod to Lilith, she disappeared with a crackle of electricity and a burst of blue light. “How long do you think it should be until she returns?” Now grasping tightly onto the sleeve of her pseudo mother’s cloak, she scrapped her shoe nervously on the ground. “It shouldn’t take that long, right, Lilith?”

“Edalyn told me if she is gone longer than fifteen minutes, I should come to retrieve her,” Lilith clarified, rubbing soothing circles on the preteen’s back. “But there is nothing to worry about, sweetheart. Growing up with Eda, she won’t be gone that too long. Just give her a few minutes.”

“Eda will be back soon.” King twitched slightly as he patted her cheek, trying to comfort the upset girl. “She has your magic to defend herself if there is something truly bad on the other side of the portal.”

Luz remained silent as she focused her gaze back onto the portal, blinking at a bright burst of light as her mentor and pseudo maternal figure stepped out. Once the burst of light was cleared, the faded gray haired teenager walked over to them, pausing to tuck a bright, multi-colored flower behind Luz’s ear with a large grin. “The portal works kiddo,” she said, taking a step back. “You can go back to the Human Realm. It’s warm enough so you don’t have to worry about wearing nothing more than what you are wearing unlike here.” Stepping over to her and drawing her close to her, she wrapped her into a tight hug. “Now you keep yourself safe and listen to your mother. If everything works out correctly, hopefully you will be to return this summer to continue your training.”

“Bye, Eda,” she whispered, voice choking as Lilith also crouched down, wrapping her in a hug. “Bye Lilith, King,” she added quickly, watching misty eyed as Lilith plucked King off of her shoulder and stepped back to stand behind the red line. “I will miss you until I see you again.”

“Now remember to follow the instructions of what our mother says,” Lilith said as the ten-year-old preteen turned to face the blue, pulsing portal. “And keep up with your school work from Hexide. I don’t want you to return in a few months to find that you are behind on your course work.”

“I will do much as I can,” she promised, hesitating as she held her hand out towards the portal. “But I will be attending the human version of Hexide.” Glancing one more at Lilith, Eda, and King, her adopted family, she said, “I love you, guys,” before taking a step into the bright light and disappearing into the world between the Demon and Human Realms. 

***

Luz tried to calm the pounding of her heart as she kept a firm hold onto her adopted family’s pendant, not wanting to show how uncomfortable she felt. Whatever the reason they the police officer had been shocked when seeing her or brought her to the very back in a private room to “talk to her” mustn’t be good. Hazel-brown eyes peeking up beneath her bags, she watched as a woman, dressed in a police uniform, settle in the seat in front of her. “Are you hungry or thirsty, sweetie,” the woman asked in a sickly sweet voice. “I can send one of my partners to get you something from the vending machines or from one of the nearby fast food places.”

While Luz would love to have a chicken strip basket and Hot Fudge Sundae from the nearby Dairy Queen, she knew not to ask. Flashes of the time she faced against Belos’s guards came to her mind, putting herself on edge. “No, thank you,” she said in a soft voice, shifting nervously. “Why am I here? Am I in trouble?”

The woman glanced at her partner as he stepped out. “Is there a reason why you should be in trouble?” she questioned, standing up and going over to the door as she took a basket and sat back down, placing it on her lap. “Is there something that you want to tell me? If you did something naughty, I promise you won’t be in trouble.”

“No.” Luz shook her head. “Last time I came in contact with a police officer, they were mean and hurt Eda,” she explained, tapping her feet nervously. “I don’t want to get shot at again.”

The police officer flinched, appearing visibly shocked at her announcement. “You don’t have to worry about that hear,” promised the woman, placing the box onto the table. “Do you want to color or anything while I ask you some questions? We just got new Spider-Man coloring book and some brand new markers.”  
“I don’t want to color,” she said, keeping her voice soft and low. Crossing her arms and sighing, she glanced longingly out of the window. “Can I go home now?” the ten-year-old questioned sullenly. “I want my Mami.”

“You can see your guardian in a half an hour,” the female police officer promised as she placed the box under the table by her feet. “They have to wait until someone comes to relieve them for their shift, and want to pick you up some fresh clothes before coming here. Now, while we are waiting for them, I am just going to ask a few questions that I want you to answer, darling. If you feel uncomfortable about a question just let me know and we can go to another question.”

She nodded.

“You mentioned someone named Eda.” The police officer pulled out a notepad and pressed a pen against the top. “Can you tell me who she is, darling?”

“Oh, you want me to talk about Mama!” Luz brightened, her nerves easing. “Mama and Tia Lilith took care of me when I lived with them. I was attending school with a scholarship because of them and made good friends.”  
“What school did you attend?” The woman glanced up after she took the notes down. “If you needed a scholarship to attend, it must have been expensive.”

Luz, while still struggling with social cues, could tell she had said too much. “It was very expensive,” she explained, hands settling onto her lap. “I was one of two scholarship students who attended and many of my classmates were better off.” She knew, if the learned what little she told them, there would be no way to track her location down with it being in the Demon Realm and needing a portal to travel both either way. “But I loved attending there and going to my classes. They were easier for me than the school I had used to attend.”

“Do you remember the name of the school?”

Luz blinked before pressing her lips firmly together. “I don’t remember the schools name,” she explained, watching the woman write more notes into the notebook. “Where is my Mami,” the ten-year-old pressed, starting to worry. “It has never taken this long for her to come and get me. She has only ever taken twenty minutes.”

The police officer blinked. “Your Mami hasn’t arrived yet,” she explained gently. “When your guardian arrives here, one of my co-workers will come and notify me. Now, back on topic, can you tell me about your friends? Like their names or if you met their parents, their names too, darling. The more you tell me about your “Mama” and “Tia Lilith” the sooner we can notify them that you have arrived home safe.”

Luz moved her gaze to the table, refusing to meet the police officer. She didn’t want to talk to her anymore. Instead, she wanted to see her Mami and just go back to her house to sleep in her own bed and have a full meal. “Can we be done yet?” the ten-year-old said, pressing her arms against her lower stomach and tightening her grip around her pendant. 

Before the woman could answer, there was a soft knock at the door. Putting away her notebook, she stood up as another officer, the man from before, poked his head in. “Her guardian has arrived,” he said. “And they want to see her.”

“They can come in.” She stood up, placing her notebook into her back pocket. “She has been asking for them the past few minutes and wanting to see them. Let’s leave them be for a bit so she can get used to them again and we can go over the information I found.”

Exiting, a man, in his late seventies entered, coming to a stop at the end of the table. “You must be Luz,” he said, settling down in the chair in front of her. “The photos I have of you don’t do any justice. You look so much like your mother, like my little Camilia.”

“W-Where is my Mami?” She stood up, pushing the chair behind her before she began to approach the door before pausing halfway between the door and table. “Who are you? And why are you here instead of Mami?”

“Luz…baby girl..I don’t know of Camilia has told you who I am but I am Camilia’s father,” the older man explained gently. “That would make me your Abuelo. Your grandfather, Luz. You don’t know how long I have been waiting to meet you.”

Luz backed away, pressing herself into the corner. “Mami said that you were a bad man,” she whispered, eyes widening. “And that it would be bad if I ever met you. What did you do to my Mami?”

“Your mother,” her grandfather began, hands resting on the edge of the table. He spoke in a gravelly voice that seemed to grow heavier as he continued. “Your mother, Camilia, was proven not to be a fit parent. Luz, upon you being found, I was granted full custody of you. From this moment on, unless a judge says otherwise, you will be living with me and your Tia Gabrielle near the school which you will be attending.”


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before reading, I would like to warn that the Spanish was mostly used through Google translate. While I do know some Spanish, it’s very basic and its been several years since I’ve actually attempted to write in Spanish. With me knowing some basic words, I am attempting my best at trying to get Spanish correct from what I know and using my resources. But if you are more fluent in Spanish than me and notice something is wrong. Please correct me in the comments so I can fix it.

Her Mami’s father didn’t stay that long with her before a woman came to visit with her. She introduced herself as Tia Gabrielle before going into how cute she looked and must have been scared when held captive. Reassuring the irked ten-year-old that she was safe, the woman, plump and almost starry eyed, went into details of how she would be fixed. A pretty pink dress with ruffles at the seam and two pigtails and bows would be the first part. The second, after having her cleared by both a doctor and psychiatrist, she would be enrolled back into the school she attended last fall much to her chagrin.

Sitting there, listening to the woman babble about how she would look like a cute little doll, Luz began to realize just how much freedom and flexibility Lilith and Eda had given her. They weren’t overbearing and demanding her to conform to their preferences when instead they supported her when she talked about letting her hair grow out and slowly wearing clothes that her classmates wore instead of others of her age. Now, with these strangers, her freedom of choice and wants were going to go unheard and forced to conform to what they wanted her to be.

“What if I don’t want to wear a stupid dress or pigtails?” she challenged, voicing her thoughts. “Or get picked on at my old school again? The principal and staff never listened to me and sided with my tormentor, punishing me for not fighting back. That was why Mami was going to transfer me to another school in the distract.”

“You won’t have to worry about that anymore Luzella.” Gabrielle Garcia shook her hand with a dismissive wave without looking up from her cellphone. She was currently scrolling through Facebook, only giving her long lost niece a small part of her attention. “Papa has already started contacting some of his old contacts from back when he was president and some of them are attending the same school at you. So, you do not have to worry about anyone bullying or tormenting you anymore. And if that happens, just tell Papa or I and we can deal with it. You have nothing to worry about while attending school.”

Eyes widening and gasping, Luz felt sick to her stomach. What her “Tia” Gabrielle had said sounded just like what Amity had experienced with her parents, Alador and Odalia Blight, before meeting Luz and befriending her, Gus, and Willow. “I-I want to make friends on my own,” she stammered, panic ringing in her voice. “Just making friends with grandchildren of his connections.”

“That will be enough Luzella!” came the stern and gruff voice of her mother’s father as he entered the back room. “You will not protest when your aunt and I make decisions that will benefit you in the future. Making connections at a young age and focusing all your time on school and sports, you will possibly have enough potential to one day take over my business when your uncle, Edwardo, decides to step down and take time away from the bustle of the cities.”

Clenching tightly onto the pendent in her pocket and biting the inside of her cheek so she didn’t act rash, the ten-year-old gave a mute nod, following the prodding of both of the adults in the room out into the lobby of the police station. Only after checking over her briefly and having her grandfather signing some paper work, the preteen was able to get her bags and follow her “Tia” to the car.

Begrudgingly storing her luggage into the very back, she got into the backseat and clipped her seatbelt into place. As the car pulled away from the police station, Luz wasn’t looking forward to the unknown amount of time with her new guardians or was she prepared for what the future she was about to head towards.

***

Standing in front of the home that her grandfather and aunt said they lived in, she had to think that it made the Blight Manor seem warm and friendly. Behind them, just closing, a large steel gate blocked her from escaping and reminded her of the Conformatorium when Eda and her invaded to attempt to get King’s crown. Only this time she was on her own and had no magic to defend herself if things went dire. Moving her gaze back from behind her to the front where the large, foreboding walls of the mansion stood. Already, stomach churning in realization, Luz knew that everything was different. Even when visiting Eda’s and Lilith’s parents, their home, while a huge mansion, was warm and inviting even though they were a bit stricter than her own maternal figures. With this, she fought back tears, not wanting to anger her grandfather more than she has done already.

“With our family having such a large amount of money, Papa and Edwardo bought this mansion together to be in the same town as you were raised in,” Gabrielle explained as she emerged from the car, eyes still partly on her phone. “While Edwardo is in New Mexico to man the business for a few more weeks, Papa and I will be here to raise you before Edwardo, his wife, and three kids join us. The eldest, a few years older than you, will be attending the same school as you.”

“She will be looking out for you when she starts attending,” her grandfather explained, approaching them as he carried her bags from the back of the car. “Now, let’s get into the house and start having you to settle in before we settle down for the evening meal, Luzella.” Turning around to head his daughter and granddaughter towards the house, he stops in his tracks. “What are you doing, Camilia? I did not give you permission to enter my property.”

Peering from behind her grandfather, Luz smiled before rushing forward. “Mami!” Throwing her arms around her mother’s waist and almost droving the breath from her lungs. “I missed you so much, Mami!” Burying her face into her mother’s nurse uniform and clutching onto her scrubs the ten-year-old let out a heart wrenching sob, causing her mother to crouch down and rubbing soothing circles on her back.

“Shhh, sweetie,” she whispered, rubbing her back and gently ruffing her long hair. “Mami has you. I have you, Luz.”

“I want to go home with you,” she simpered, big, fat tears falling down her cheeks. “Please, can’t I go with you instead of staying here?”

“I know you want to sweetheart but until I can get visitations, you will have to hold your head up and smile your little sunshine,” Camilia said tenderly, cradling her face with a glow of love on her face. “Just be patient and wait until the social worker visits you to see who you want to live with.”

“Okay, Mami,” she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut as Camilia pressed a kiss into her forehead. “I love you.”

“I love you too, sweetheart,” she said, standing up. “The social worker has given me permission to call you tonight if you are feeling up to it.”

“I will, Mami,” she promised, watching mournfully as a security guard escorted her mother out and behind the closing gates. "Bye, Mama."

Turning back to his granddaughter and placing his free hand on her shoulder, Abel Noceda led her into the mansion, leading to where she would be staying. “This is your bedroom,” he said, opening the door and depositing her bags in the corner. “Take a shower and change into some suitable clothes in the next hour so you can join us downstairs for the evening meal.”

Giving a mute nod, Luz was left alone as she went to over where she assumed extra pairs of clothes were stored. Pulling open a door, she frowned at the sight of a blood beet red dress that had ruffles going down to what she assumed would be her knees. Sighing, she threw onto the bed and stalked over to the bathroom, wanting to get it done quickly before the hour was up.

The shower felt heavenly after the past five months of taking cold baths in the darkness after being told by Eda not to light a fire in the fire place by herself. With the Human Realm having modern energy and an abundance in water, she lingered in a minute or two longer than she would if she was back at The Owl House. Emerging from the steaming showers and wrapping the towel tightly around her thin frame, Luz approached the mirror, using her free hand to wring out her wet hair and using a spare pony tail to put up a lopsided ponytail. Happy with her results, she emerged from the warm bathroom and approached to where she laid out her outfit.

Changing into the blood beet red dress and putting her necklace on, she settled on the bed, seeing she had forty-five minutes until her grandfather or her aunt came to retrieved her for supper. Tapping her fingers on her knees, she went over to her school bag, pulling out her few textbooks she took from Hexide. Thinking of reading them to pass the time, she opened the book and began to skim over the text.

She barely had gotten through the first passage on the care of Griffins and their young when there was a knock at her door. Marking her spot and hiding her textbooks from Hexide under her bed, she approached the door. “Yes?” she asked, head popping out from the other side of the door. Raising her gaze, she saw a woman, dressed in a black and white maid outfit standing in front of her door. “Can I help you with something?”

“It is time to eat, Ms. Noceda,” the maid said, giving her a kind smile as she took a step back. “Mr. Noceda has asked me to escort you to the dining room for the evening meal. Do you need a few more minutes or would you be ready to head there now, Ma’am?”

“Just give me a second,” she said to the woman. Reentering back into her bedroom, she carried the bag of her personal items to her bed. Making sure it was hidden from sight, she tucked the blanket back down before exiting the bedroom. Closing the door, she followed the woman to the dining room. Thanking the woman and settling in one of the three chairs, she rubbed the metal pendant between her fingers, trying to calm the roar of the blood in her eardrums and the thumping of her heart.

She barely had begun to calm down when her grandfather and aunt settled at the table. Abel took the rear of the table as her aunt settled on the other side, facing Luz. They were all dressed in higher end clothes and Gabrielle wore makeup that made her several years older than she appeared.

“You clean up very nice, Luz,” Gabrielle said, glancing at where the ten-year-old squirmed in her seat, keeping her hands on her lap and gaze on the table. “Who such a pretty little girl was under all that disgusting mess or my little sister could actually hide something as beautiful as you from Father and I for so long.”

“Let’s not speak of that woman for the moment,” Abel said, nodding in approval at the appearance of his granddaughter. “Luz?”

“Yes, sir,” she replied timidly.

“After dinner, we will be going through your things,” her Mami’s father expressed, meeting her timid gaze. “I will not let my daughter soil the Noceda name by wearing or owning anything that is deemed inferior or gaudy.”

Swallowing back a plea of desperation, she gave a mute nod. Already, after the short while she’s been with them, there was no room for argument or protest unless, it was assumed, she wanted to go to bed without supper.

“I hope you like the meal,” he added as the first course, a vegetable broth with small pieces of mystery meat and a side of chickpeas, was placed in front of them. “While with me, you will be eating junk food or any food of the impoverished.”

“The meal looks good,” Luz replied, lifting up a spoonful to take her first bite. Swallowing, she fought back a grimace as it settled like a stone in her stomach. “It’s been awhile since I have had any kind of food that is rich with flavor as this is.”

“This will be commonly what we eat,” Gabrielle interjected in. “You will get used to eating larger portions and three times a day instead of what little you must have ate with those people who held you captive for the past five months.”

“Mama and Tia did the best they could,” she mumbled under her breath, hand wrapping around her pendant as she glared coldly at the food. “My stomach hurts,” she announced with a forced pain grimace. “May I be excused?”

“No, you may not,” Abel Noceda snapped at his granddaughter. “You will finish what we have given you and eat the seconds that you will be receiving.”

“A child should never speak unless spoken too,” her aunt yelled as she took a sip of her cherry red wine. “Be lucky that you are only getting reprimanded instead of being spanked for back talking and rising your voice, Luz.”

Flinching and fighting the urge to curl up in herself, the ten-year-old moved her gaze back to her owl. Scooping up another spoonful, she forced herself to swallow it before taking a tip of the unidentifiable brown liquid in her glass. Gagging on its putrid taste, Luz let out a rough cough before seeing her grandfather, Abel Noceda, was looking at her with disapproval.

“So, Luz, you seem like you aren’t easy to fool, how those, captors, seemed to convince you that they were your family?” asked Gabrielle as she finished her last bit of soup.

“W-well..” Luz blushed as she paused to take a breath to push back the vulnerability she felt around her two new guardians. “Mama was the first one to take me in and protected me when I got in over my head. She owns her own businesses and lives with a roommate.” It was hard for Luz to remember to translate things from the Demon Realm into what would be accurate in the Human Realm. ‘Than Tia Lilith is a Vice-President of a very large company. But after the president threatened to “deport me”, she used less time at work and more on watching over and helping Mama take care of me.”

Abel looked seconds away from dismissing her. “Entonces, dos extranos se convitrtieron en tu familia?” he asked scornfully. “No son mas que traficantes.”

Hearing the scorn of people who she held so highly and them being reviewed as someone as bad as Human Traffickers made Luz sick and distracted, causing her to drop her spoon with a clatter. Hazel-brown eyes almost widening in anger and darkening, she waited for some rebuttal from Gabrielle but had nothing but the air of challenge wringing around Luz and her grandfather.

“They are not like that,” Luz replied hotly, retrieving her spoon from where it landed. “I am alive still because of Mama and Tia Lilith. They have earned their spot as part of my family.”

“You will see the power of real family bonds,” Abel said. “Family Bonds are stronger with people’s real family. So, please remember not to hold those trafficker’s in the same regard as your mother, aunt, and I from now on.”

Remembering the many times that Amity had shown up to school with crudely hidden bruises, Luz nodded and looked back down at her bowl. In her lapse of attention, her bowl had been replaced for a bigger and fuller own, almost immediately making her stomach ache. Forcing the first bite down, she fell silent and kept one hand on her lap, clutching onto the Clawthorne pendant.

The meal, lasting another hour or two, began to draw to a close when one of her grandfather’s workers appeared and took her uneaten desert, chocolate brownie with whipped cream and M&M’s, from her dinner tray. It was the ache of her stomach and sickly feeling settling on her that she held no energy to please her new guardians to attempt to even touch something that would be gone within minutes. Forcing herself to keep her gaze low, she felt the boiling gaze of her grandfather land on her, making her squirm and tremble. “I’m sorry for not eating my meal fully, grandfather,” she whispered, not daring to meet his gaze. “But I was given too much to eat.”

“I am full, Papa, and have some work to finish for my courses,” Gabrielle announced as she stood up. “If you need help with going with Luz’s things just send a servant to find me.” Passing by where her niece, she gently patted her shoulder and disappeared into the back maze of hallways.

“You will have fifteen minutes to go to your room and place your bags onto your bed,” her grandfather said, standing up and pushing his chair in. “When that fifteen minutes is up, I will be there with several trash bags to go through your items and declutter your foul items that are deemed unworthy of being in the same house as ours.”

“Yes, sir.” Standing up and pushing her chair in, the ten-year-old turned around and picked a random direction to go in, hoping to find one of her father’s workers to take her to her bedroom. Glancing once more at the table, she left the dining room and went to look for her bedroom.

***

Going through her items and watching her prized possessions getting tossed into three large garbage breaks were hard, it wasn’t until the last few items that Luz’s resolve began to crumble. It was the sight of the set of four books Eda had given her during the start of her stay that pushed her over the edge. Her grandfather, proceving it gibberish, was about to throw it away when she grabbed them from his hands, saying they were in another language.

Giving her a harsh warning look, the elderly man pulled out the last two items in her duffel bag. One being King’s stuffed rabbit and the other being Amity’s Leatherman jacket. “G-grandfather,” she began, stomach dropping as he muttered, “A girl’s, not my granddaughter,” before preparing to throw both into the third and last bag.

“No!” Dropping the set of books onto her bed, Luz lunged forward and seized the two items, bringing them close to her while her male guardian refused to release the hold on the jacket. “I won’t let you throw these away! Good friends gave me these, Grandfather! These items are the only ones I have left of them!”

“You can keep that blasted rabbit but will not be permitted to keep this jacket,” he growled, yanking it out of her hand and sending her tumbling to the floor. “It is shameful for you to even own something that could be seen as a token of love from another girl.” With a look of disgust and malice, he shoved the jacket into the garbage bag. Hauling the three bags out into the hallway, he turned to his granddaughter. “Until you can learn how to properly behave, you can live in your room,” he added, slamming the door shut and locking it behind him.

Letting out a howl almost sounded like a Slitherbeast, Luz threw herself at the door, her hands pounding on it. “Grandfather! Grandfather!” Tears welled in the corner of her eyes and slid down until she had no strength to continue pleading. “Please, Grandfather let me out. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

***

Later, after a few hours had passed, Luz managed to drag herself from the floor and curl up tightly on her bed. Holding King’s stuffed bear and Eda’s four books close, she buried her head into the silk pillow before sobbing. While her and Amity were still at times distant, the Leatherman jacket had been the very first, almost brand new, gift she had received while on the Isles, and came from a good friend too. It hurt her so much to think it was gone.

Once she felt like she could no longer cry, the ten-year-old slid off of her bed and began to change from the useless and wrinkled dress to the pair of pajamas her grandfather had set out. Once fully dressed, she glanced at her phone, still partly charged, where it sat on her dresser. During his haste to leave, Abel had forgotten to confiscate her charger and cell phone, leaving her with one thing, her ability to always have one form of privacy.

Grabbing her cellphone and burrowing under the heavy comforter, she powered the phone up, being greeted by her lock screen image of her small family of three. The picture had taken a few days after Lilith became more prominent in her life and they attempted to make one of the more expensive baking recipes in celebration of Luz gaining the Clawthorne family crest.

Staring at the screen and blinking her eyes, it wasn’t hard to think of how this almost exact scenario had played out a few months prior. Only this time, instead of being trapped from her Mami alone, she wasn’t able to see her Mama or Tia anymore too. It hurt worse than never seeing her adopted family members ever again. It almost drove her to tears. Fingers moving to the camera button, she hit record, and in a broke voice began to talk.

“Hey Mama, Tia, I know I won’t be able to send this to you but I thought it might help. There isn’t much time for me to talk as my new guardian, my Mami’s father, has been granted custody of me. But I don’t think I will be seeing you in a while guys. Probably not until I am eighteen, that is if I can survive with him that long.”

Luz blinked her eyes who were starting to mist. Sniffling, she turned her gaze back to her phone, throat clenching tightly as she tried to continue.

“My grandfather is like Amity’s parents but worse. H-he took everything that I had from you guys. I had to throw big enough fit to keep Mama’s books and King’s toy. Tell Amity, Willow, and Gus that I’m sorry for not fighting hard enough to keep the things they gave me. I’m sorry. I’m sorry...” Sitting up and bring the phone close to her, she added, “It feels so strange for so much to change and not having you here to share it with. I-I don’t know w-when or how when I am going to see you again b-but if everything turns out alright, I will try to find my way home to you. I promise.” Taking a moment to compose herself, she added in a whisper, “Con plumas y gemas acudeomos a madre, Mama, Tia.”

With one more longing look, she ended the recording and powered down her phone, hiding it and its charger in between her mattress and box spring. Giving one last heavy sigh, Luz crawled into her bed, curling up beneath the covers, clutching the five items saved in her grandfather’s path close to her heart, hoping and praying that tomorrow would be a better day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the next few chapters, while it may be slower paced, I want to start to set up the love-hate relationship between Luz, her new guardians, and what everyone expects of her. With that, it will be a few more chapters before A) Luz starts up at her old school again and B) Lilith and Eda begin to wonder why they hadn’t heard anything from their daughter/niece yet when it’s been a month and some days since she left to return to her Mami. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you like this chapter. While it’s on the shorter side, it contained some important scenes that will be integral for later chapters. 
> 
> Thank you for reading and constructive criticism is welcomed. 
> 
> -Dreamelilly018


	3. Chapter Three

It was very easy for her to realize that living with her grandfather and aunt was very different than in the Demon Realm. In The Owl House, she knew Eda, Lilith, Lilith, and Hooty loved and cared for her. While with her grandfather and aunt didn’t lather her with love or praise like she was used t. Instead, it was a stream of disapproval and embarrassment when she did something, they deemed inferior. She tired, with her last shred of childhood innocence, believed they loved and wanted only for the best for her. However, moments, back in the Owl House would have been accepted, were frowned upon and scolded at. There was nothing she could do right if Luz was being herself. The only way to get approval was to bed and conform to their perfect and projected view of what they expected of her.

With those moments of her being a terrible child and a bad ward, Luz felt like bawling with every new experience.

Her making simple mistakes and coming either to her grandfather or aunt for help was met with a scornful look and long, isolating hours spent locked in her bedroom in punishment.

Or her excited, bouncing, and pretending to be Azura in an attempt to practice her magic with her training wand was deemed childish and her wand and books are thrown away, stripping another connection she had connecting herself back to The Boiling Isles and her adventures with its occupants.

But wearing frilly dresses and matching accessories for boring dinner parties that her grandfather hosted to introduce her was met with praise and moments of lavish affection.

Sitting quiet and trying to fight the overwhelming urge to jump and practice the lessons Tia Lilith and Mama given to her was rewarded with a brief, supervised, and scripted calls with her Mami before she went to bed for the evening.

  
***

Abel Noceda had always kept his ties with his associates from his business days close to him and made sure to interact with them every few months. It was the arrival of his only granddaughter by his youngest daughter, Camilia that caused him to reach out a few weeks earlier than planned.

But unlike in the past, it wasn’t a social visit. It was for business and the future of his granddaughter. Closing the door behind him, he entered the restaurant and settled down at their table as his associates, Aoi Sato, Diego Garcia, and Mason Jones, were seated and waiting for him.

"It has been quite a few months, my friend," Aoi Sato said, lowering her glass of Sweet Tea back onto the table.

"Earlier than expected," Diego Garcia added in his heavy, Spanish accent, glancing at his friend. "It must be important that you have asked us to join you here a few months early."

"As you know that my youngest daughter, Camilia Noceda, ran away when she was only fifteen, and unknowingly to me at the time, she was pregnant." Abel paused, giving his order of a simple spaghetti and garlic bread order. "Well, about nine days ago, I gained custody of my eleven-year-old granddaughter and now am looking for people who would be appropriate for her to befriend."

"My little darling Sofia," Mason said, pulling out of his phone. "While she is two years older than your granddaughter, having someone who can be a perfect example of what you expect your granddaughter to be like."

"I can pull some strings and have my grandson, Riku, be transferred into the same school as her by the end of the week," Aoi explained with a curt nod. "We could work out for a betrothal between them, and strengthen our businesses through their marriage."  
Abel nodded, thinking. "That sounds like a good way to start her new life." Seeing the waiter approaching, the elderly man took his plate and shooing the waiter away so they could finish their conversation. "With having our three grandchildren with her, it will mold her into the proper young lady that she has to be."

"I pity your grandchild with having to be raised improperly with your youngest daughter and having to start from rock bottom," Diego responded. "I could barely handle it with my granddaughter, Gracie when I was first granted custody of her twelve years ago."

"It will take some time but I know that my granddaughter, Luzella, will become a better and more proper woman than my Camilia could have ever been or expected to," Abel said with a hint of praise in his voice. "While she has many faults, I know that I will be able to make her shine like a diamond and sole inheritor of my company once my son, Eduardo, resigns. Once he comes to live with us here in this pitiful town, Luzella will begin her training."

"Good luck to that my friend," his three associates praised with a clink of their glasses.

  
***

It was November thirty-first, and Luz had celebrated her first birthday without her Mami.

Her birthday had been over two weeks before but her grandfather, in his haste to get approved friends, had overlooked it. While it hurt and made her miss the Demon Realm more, she knew it was just another disappointment in her new life. It was the first disappointment of many to come that she would have to learn to expect and accept. There was no more happiness that the Demon Realm had provided instead just sorrow and unhappiness for the Human Realm.

It was time for her to grow up, and accept she would be no one’s little bush squirrel or someone’s only, but prized, pupil. Instead, she would just be the mistake that drove her mother away from her better off family.

Seeing the looks of anger from Tia Gabrielle and impatience from Abuelo Abel from her slip-ups, Luz tried many and many times to assure herself that they needed time. Soon, once everything was settled down, they would start to give her more affection and positive attention that she, as a human, deserved. Until then, she would just focus on her studies, from the Demon Realm and Human Realm, until things got better.

She would just have to hold her head up and wait until the storm calmed.

***

 _‘I want to talk to Mama,’_ she thought sullenly, staring at her Beast Keeping textbook with a sad expression, hazel-brown eyes hazy. Her grandfather, Abel Noceda, had denied her from speaking to her Mami today after she broke an expensive family vase which drove her to her bedroom to hide until she was called for the afternoon meal. _‘She didn’t even get to talk or see me on my birthday.’_ Tears dampening her sleeves, the eleven-year-old sat up, sitting crossed-legged as she stared around her bare bedroom.

While her bedroom back in the Owl House was almost bare, it contained some personalization from her with her sleeping bag on the floor and other items scattered around and placed in various places. Her bedroom with her grandfather was bare of anything that screamed she lived there. It felt like she was a guest until she proved her worth.

 _‘Eda and Lilith would flay them alive,’_ Luz thought amusedly. _‘They have always had a strong hatred for others who couldn’t stand my hyperactivity.’_

"Stop it, Luz!" Burying her face into her hands and letting out a muffled scream, the eleven-year-old finally let her shoulders slump, defeat and exhaustion settling on her shoulders. "You can’t be thinking of the past anymore! Grandfather and Auntie have punished you enough because of that."

She was just about to turn her attention to her Beast Keeping Book when there was the click of the lock and her grandfather stepped in. He had a brilliant blue dress with ruffles going to the end. "Get changed into this dress," he said, holding it out to her, leaving no room for argument. "I will be waiting outside for you. Do not keep me waiting for long, Luzella."

Throwing her free arm to cover her book as Abel placed the dress over her side of her bed, Luz gave a quick nod as he exited, slamming the door shut behind him. Pulling herself off of the bed and stripping out of her plainer, everyday dress, she put on the dress, hating how smooth the blue satin was against her bare skin. Slipping on the shoes on the floor, the eleven-year-old approached the mirror to grab her necklace. Slipping the pendant she walked out into the hallway.

"How to look beautiful, my granddaughter." Abel took her head, leading down the hall to his bedroom. Closing the door behind him, she settled on the edge of the bed, sitting straight. "With everything that has happened these past two weeks, I have overlooked your eleventh birthday. Because of that, you, me, your Tia, and a few of my associates will be celebrating it today."

A part of Luz wanted to cry out in relief but another felt disappointment. Thinking of a birthday party with her grandfather and his stuck up associates being her stomach curd.

"Thank you, Grandfather!" Forcing a smile on her face and leaping to her feet, Luz threw her arms around her grandfather’s bony frame, letting out a pitiful and ear bleeding squeal. "You don’t know how much I appreciate this! Thank you! Thank you!"

"You look like a proper young lady, baby girl." Abel gently brushed his granddaughter’s long hair to the side. "Now, you will be meeting some grandchildren of my associates today while I entertain their grandparents. I want you to be on your best behavior now, Luzella."

"I will be on my best behavior," she promised almost robotically as her grandfather guided her through the halls and downstairs to where everyone was waiting. "I-I thought there would be more people here."

"Hush," he scolded, gripping tightly onto his granddaughter’s arm. "Don’t be rude now. They have taken time out of their busy schedule to spend a few hours with someone they haven’t met until today."

Turning around the corner, Luz caught sight of six strangers that she didn’t recognize. Three old enough to be her grandfather’s associates and were dressed like they were attending some fancy meeting instead of a birthday party of an eleven-year-old. In the center of the room, seated on the couch, two girls and a male, were staring at their phones, not paying attention to each other. In front of them, a table was placed with a large cake and several other healthy foods that looked unappealing.

"My associates have invited their grandchildren so you’re not all by yourself," Abel explained quickly. "And I have already preapproved them to be your friends. So there is no worry of you soiling yourself with befriending some lower-class child."

Instantly, she frowned. "That sounds good, Grandfather." Her voice grew quieter as she hid slightly behind her bulky grandfather. "W-will I will be meeting them by myself or will you be introducing me?"

"Don’t be impolite," scolded her Abuelo, gently pushing her forward. "I have some things to speak about with my associates. And, besides, introducing yourself to the friends that I preapproved will help prepare yourself to make connections once you are old enough to take over my business once Eduardo, his wife, and children return here and retire from manning the business from afar when you come of age."

"B-But I don’t wa-" Her protests fell a silence as she stopped in front of the others and her father went to his friends on the other side of the room. "H-H-Hello?"

"Oh great, Mr. Abel’s granddaughter is a freak," the only male, about a few months older than her, groaned as he paused the game he had been playing. "What do you want stupid girl? I doubt my grandfather thought you were stupid, or she wouldn’t have told me that I am now betrothed to you."

"What?" There were many things she understood and knew but also many things she didn’t. The word "betrothed" was one of them. "You are what to me?"

"I am going to get-"

"You must be Luz!" A girl, having a vibrant mane of blue hair, stood up, walked over to her. She was wearing a simple, cream blouse and a black skirt that went down to her knees that held her phone. "My name is Sofia Carmen," she said, pulling her over to a free space next to her on the couch. "My Papa said that your grandfather just got custody of you. How are you adapting to being in a new home?"

"Uhhh." Luz knew what she wanted to answer but it would make her grandfather angry. "It has been a new experience compared to what I am used to," she explained. "It is going to take some time to get used to this whole new situation."

"You will adapt soon enough," another voice, the other girl, piped in, smiling at her. "For now, you will have Riku, Sofia, and I, oh my name is Amber by the way, with you."

"Even though I was forced to be here," the boy, Riku, grumbled as he took a sip from a red Solo cup. "Grandmother said that I needed to come here for at least the first hour. Don’t see why though."

"What do you mean to my grandfather’s standards?" Luz grew worried, standing up and hands balling up into fists. "Did my grandfather make you be friends with me so that I’m not able to make friends with any one of my choices?"

"No, no, it’s just…" Sofia looked over Amber’s and Riku’s annoyed gaze before her eyes landed back on Luz, who had moved away from the couch and looked like she was about to turn.

"W-why come if you don’t want to be here?" Luz asked, deciding to cut in before there was a fight. If they were anything like Lilith and Hooty, she would be taking a running dive to hide under a nearby piece of furniture. After the last major blowout, she still had trouble not using the bandage around her knee when she walked. "You didn’t have to come."

"Why do you think I would be at a lame baby’s birthday party," snorted Riku, pulling out his cellphone and beginning to play a game. "Our grandparents made us come here so that you would have cruddy friends that would live up to your grandfather’s standards."

"You didn’t even have a choice did you?" she asked quietly, voice in a hushed whisper.

"Of course, we didn’t," Amber snapped rudely. "Why do you think we would come to a birthday party of some random person that disappeared for over five months?"

Luz felt like she was about to cry. Biting the inside of her cheek and pressing her fingernails into her palms, the eleven-year-old fought the burning of tears. "I didn’t have a choice," she deadpanned, the maturity of her few months of growing up starting to creep in her voice. "I c-c-couldn’t let him get here! If he came here, there was no telling what he could do!"

"Who the hell are you talking about?" Riku asked as he lifted his gaze from his phone, puzzled. "Who the hell is he?"

"I know! I know!" Amber got a look of absolute glee as she sneered. "It was your daddy wasn’t it," she snickered, covering her head. "You were just a bad child that your Mommy sent you away from because you drove your daddy away!"

"Guys..." Sofia took a step forward, hand reaching out to comfort Luz as the eleven-year-old flinched back. "I think this is enough. Sure, we don’t want to be here but we should make the best of what we have for the moment."

"It wasn’t my father!" Luz felt her anger beginning to bubble to the surface, hands growing hot and clammy. Her hazel-brown eyes almost flashed to pure black for a few seconds before darkening to a muddy, off, brown color. "The person I am talking about is a terrible man named Belos! If I hadn’t stopped him, there was no telling what he could have done!"

In an instant, before any could react or see what happened, there was a flash of bright light than cracking of something below. Luz half-dazed found herself on the floor and several feet away from where she had stood. Where she had stood was now a crater on the floor and smoke was billowing above it. "W-w-what happened?" she gasped, eyes widening as she stared at her family’s pendant and found a burn mark, with a large, glowing C on her palm.

"That is it!" Abel Noceda whipped around to face his granddaughter as she tried to rationalize what had happened. Brushing past few scurrying servants that were guiding the children, who were next to her, into the attached kitchen. Seizing hold of her arm, the elderly man began to drag her away. "I have had enough with your horrible, horrible behavior young lady," he snapped, voice a pool of venom. "I have done nothing but been kind and loving to you. And this is how you repay me, little girl?"

Luz was unable to respond before her arm was yanked forward and she was dragged across the floor until she came to her bedroom. Digging her heels into the floor and trying to make herself limp, the eleven-year-old tried to make it hard for her grandfather to take her into her bedroom. "I didn’t do anything, Abuelo! I don’t know what happened!" Tears of frustration and fear spilled down her cheeks and dampened the collar of her dress. "Please, let me go, Abuelo!" Straining against his hold, she risked it and struck her fist against her grandfather’s wrist, trying to lessen his hold on her so she could escape. Maybe, somehow, if she got free there could be a way for her to return to the Demon Realm. Return to the place where she would be safe.

Abel looked seconds away from yelling at his granddaughter before he took a deep breath. Finally ready to begin in his booming voice, the elderly man started on Luz. But still, he was angry enough that he could barely speak. "Ir – dormitorio – quedarse – no hay comida – dos dias." With one hard shove, she was sent tumbling to the floor and the lock clicking into place as her grandfather’s footsteps faded into nothing.

***

A few minutes later Luz lay in her bedroom, dark and cold as her grandfather had cut off her electricity and heat to add to her punishment. Shivering beneath her thin covers, she wished she had some form of light. She didn’t have anything to lessen the darkness so she could get a faint glimpse of the text from her school book. Until it grew lighter, she wouldn’t have anything to bring her any comfort except to clutch onto King’s stuffed rabbit and stroke her pendant in her throbbing palm.

It had been almost three full weeks since she had come to live with her grandfather and aunt. With the harsh treatment she received, the eleven-year-old felt like choosing to come to the Human Realm was a mistake and it was her fault. If she had chosen to remain in the Demon Realm and under the care of Lilith and Eda, she would have never landed in the position she was now. She would never have been facing the situation of going without heat or the nightmares that came with upsetting her new guardians. Thinking of her unknown length of time of residing with her jailers almost drove her to scream and messing up her room just to push her chance of escape higher with her grandfather being too distracted in the mess around her room.

Curling up onto her side and pressing her knees into her lower stomach, she could easily dream of her reunion with her adopted aunt and mother if she was able to return to the Demon Realm one day. Eda, after much worrying and running herself restless, would probably throw her arms around her and tell her she wasn’t going anywhere unless she or Lilith were with her, and probably make her sleep in her nest for an unknown amount of time. With Lilith, she would pull some strings for her to be in the same classes as her three friends, after comforting her and putting on protection spells so her two jailers could ever hurt her. Once that was all done, she would have Sapphire, her Palasmon, and stand guard on her when she couldn’t be with her. She too would probably join Eda and herself in her adopted mother’s nests until she finally convinced them to sleep in her bedroom with King at her feet and Owlbert and Sapphire sleeping on either side of her, creating a protective barrier to keep her asleep.

Just thinking of that, Luz closed her eyes and felt a wave of security to fall on her. With everything going on and her missing her adopted family, she knew that nothing would be the same and she was dealing with the blunt end of the change.


	4. Chapter Four

_Luz stood in the corridor of Hexide, Tall, pale lockers lined one side of her while on the other were doors, locked and ark, went all the way out of her sight. The only light came from dim, candles that floated just out of her reach. Hesitantly, she took a step forward, hazel-brown gaze adjusting to the dimly lit hallway. Approaching one classroom, she cautiously peered in, hoping to find the comforting presence of Willow, Amity, Gus, or Amity’s older brother, Edric, and older sister, Emira. Instead a shrill, blood chilling scream greeted her, causing her to rear back and pull her hands away, stomach dropping at the crimson on her fingertips._

_Crimson fingers dropping to the leather belt around her hip, she seized ahold of the slender, training wand that Amity had bought her a few weeks prior. Eyeing the corridor, she began to inch forward, keeping her wand out in front of her. The walls, while remaining same as before, had something that made her sick to her stomach._

_As she drew to one of the doors to the end of the hallway, she yanked the door open, revealing a bare classroom with one window in the middle. The dim moonlight illuminated a chair in the middle, a girl, around her age, sat in it._

_“Willow?” she uttered, voice ringing with shock before letting out a sob. “Willow! Oh, god, Willow. I miss you so much!!”_

_“Luz,” came the dazed reply from her friend._

_“Willow,” she repeated, voice shrill with hope. “What are you doing here, Willow? How did you get to the Human Realm?”_

_“Luz, you have to help me!” Willow’s voice became pleading, shrill with desperation. “Help me, Luz! I don’t know where I am at! Please help me!”_

_“I’m coming!” Slipping her training wand into its holder, Luz rushed forward. Within seconds, she realized that it was like she was running on ice. No matter how much she ran, her feet kept slipping beneath her and she made no progress. It wasn’t until she collapsed onto the floor, exhausted and panting that she gave up._

_From the corner of her vision, a figure, devious and menacing, stepped out from the shadows. With a slow gate, it stopped right behind Willow, putting a hand on each of her shoulders._

_“So the brave champion has come to the rescue of her little pet?” it asked, voice colder than ice, and gaze darker than coal, causing her heart to thump in horror._

_Stiff and rigid, she stood, paralyzed by its revolting presence. While she tried to move, tried to run to run to Willow, and protect her, her animalistic instincts told her to turn and flee before the bigger and more threatening predator attacked her._

_“Why is it that after everything you faced back in the Demon Realm with Emperor Belos, the Bat Queen, and death itself from your own so called “aunt” that it is in the Human Realm, you faced your scariest thing yet,” the figure taunted, eyes glinting red. “It is almost that you were begging for this. For you to see your friend hurt and scared. Or for you to realize that even though you felt at home, a human like you never belonged in a place like the Demon Realm.”_

_Her only sound was her gasping and soft whimpers. There was nothing she could say when she knew everything the figure said was the truth._

_“You are finally realizing that. After almost seven and half months in the Demon Realm, you are still nothing but a human. A burden to the people who you come in contact with,” the figure sneered, emphasizing the word “burden.”_

_Finally snapping back to the present, she gasped, taking a deep breath when the chilled feeling washed off of her. Narrowing her hazel-brown eyes and keeping her gaze on the figure, she moved her fingers to grasp her training wand, raising it up to depend herself._

_“A Human like you doesn’t deserve something like that,” he said, summoning her wand with a flick of his wrist and holding it just out of her reach_

_Anger coursing through her veins, she balled her hands into fists. Dropping into a crouch, the Hispanic teen prepared to spring forward, ready to defend her friend from danger._

_“You won’t be able to defeat me without any magic,” he said, grabbing ahold of Willow’s tortoise-blue hair. With a glint of malice, he raised her training wand before plunging the sharper end straight into her stomach. “Now, you will just be an abandoned and worthless human you are!”_

_Luz’s stomach dropped. “Willow!”_

***

With a loud gasp, Luz woke up, heart roaring in her ears. Body still heavy from the nightmare, she breathed deeply as the familiar sight of the seat material came into focus. Sitting up and rubbing her sore arm, the events of early that day came back to mind.

After her little “tantrum” two days prior, Grandfather had pulled some strings to get her into a doctor’s office early rather than later. He wanted answers for what happened, and why his granddaughter had been the only one not singed by the bolt of pure energy. Now, after waking up after a few hours of fitful sleep, Grandfather and Auntie Gabrielle were taking her to a well-known and expensive clinic in the next state over.

“Will we be there soon?” she asked sleepily, her fingers rubbing against the threadbare material of King’s stuffed rabbit. This was the only thing she was allowed to bring with before being loaded into the car after waking up and started the nineteen hour long car ride to the doctor’s clinic. “I mean are we almost to the clinic? I’m bored, Grandfather.”

Her grandfather sat behind the driver’s wheel, hands placed on “9 and 3”. Hearing his granddaughter, he moved his hazel gaze to the review mirror. “We still have another hour and half before we get to the hotel room, Luz,” he explained briefly. “Once we are settled in and have everything put in our hotel room, we will head to the clinic so we’re no late for your appointment and then we will be going to the hospital to get your immunizations and booster shots.”

 _Booster shots!_ Dread falling onto her, Luz blinked her eyes. For as long as she could remember, the Hispanic ten-year-old had great displeasure with shots and in the past have a full blown meltdown to get out of getting shots. Last time she got shots, it was in the Demon Realm. It took the bribing of Lilith and Eda for her to accept the leaches, their version of shots, with no meltdown or protest.

“Shots,” she said in a low whisper, panic creeping in her voice. “Why do I need to get booster shots for? I am perfectly fine and healthy, Grandfather.”

“It is to make sure that you say healthy,” her aunt replied, voice groggy as she stirred. “And it’s required by your school for you to get updated immunizations, darling.”

“They won’t be that bad,” her grandfather assured her in a jolly voice. “All you feel is a slight pinch than it will be over. How about, depending on how long it takes, you get to choose where we eat tonight? With how everything is going, you have been behaving mostly good and not gone off script when talking to Camilia. You deserve and earned a little treat.”

Perking up slightly, Luz’s hazel-brown eyes brightened. With her treatment over the past few weeks, she was beginning to lose her spirt and began to doubt herself. “C-can we go out for Chinese?” she asked hesitantly, eyes brimming with hope. “And rent a movie at the hotel? Mami and I used to do that once a month than she got too busy at work.”

“Yes, dear.” Auntie Gabrielle gave a fond nod before slipping back to sleep, allowing the car to lapse into silence.

Starring out of the window and flipping through Eda’s books, the time passed quickly for Luz. It wasn’t long before her grandfather parked the car and they headed to the front doors of the hotel. Getting prodded to move, the eleven-year-old stepped out of the car, holding King’s stuffed rabbit and Eda’s books close to her as they approached the building. Locking the car behind them, Abel led the way as they entered the hotel room.

Being instructed to stay close to her aunt, the dark brown haired teen settled onto the edge of the couch, elbows pressed firmly into her sides and hazel-brown eyes on her lap. Only when she realized that her aunt wasn’t by her did she raise her head. The hotel, with it starting to get into early evening, had begun to grow packed. There were different people coming and going while others were checking in. Her grandfather and aunt were at the very front, talking to the desk clerk, engrossed in their conversation. Moving her gaze away and scanning the further edge, she gasped when the familiar green locks of a person.

Shoving her things into her messenger bag and preparing to yell, she bounced to her feet, excitement and hope coursing through her veins. If that was Edric, Emira, or Amity across the lobby, they would be able to take her back to the Demon Realm with them. She would be able to return to Eda, King, and Lilith.

“Emira, Edric,” she gasped, approaching the large thong of people. Keeping her messenger bag close to her chest, Luz began to duck and weave, barely paying attention to the protests and displeased looks sent her way. Right now, the only important task was to reach them before her guardians spotted her. “AMITY!”

Skidding to a halt near the elevators, she almost broke out in tears. Her friend, Amity, and her two older siblings were standing just within her reach. “Guys!” Tears welding in her eyes, the eleven-year-old prepared to charge forward when a hand, tugging into her hair, yanked her back, causing her to land on her back and stare up at the ceiling as the crowd fell into a hushed silence.

Grandfather stood over her, his hazel eyes burning with his temper. A deep frown crossed his face as he turned to look at the onlookers. “Forgive my granddaughter,” he said in forced, broken English. “First time in United States. She is excitable.”

“No,” she cried, squirming and kicking to break free once she was pulled to her feet. Twisting her head around and craning her neck, Luz was close to sobbing when she saw her only chance of escape disappear with the closing doors. “Noo!”

Seizing tightly onto her wrist and dragging her across the floor, they stepped into a vacant elevator. It wasn’t until they were in their room did Abel Noceda turn to speak to her.

“Because of your behavior and drawing attention to yourself, young lady,” he began, giving her an almost feral look. “You will be punished more than you ever could imagine, little brat. Lucky enough, your doctor’s appointment is in an hour so your punishment will have to be after your appointment.”

Before she could respond, her grandfather turned away and entered the bathroom, leaving the elven-year-old to sink onto her shared bed with Auntie Gabrielle. Clutching her only connection to her adopted family, she let the first sob break free.

***

Luz withered beneath the gaze of her grandfather as her aunt, holding the ice bucket, left, closing the door behind her. Rubbing her clammy palms on her dress, she took a shaky breath, keeping her gaze on the floor. If she played the submissive and broken act would her grandfather be easier on her?

“You are in so much trouble, Luzella Elena Noceda!” her grandfather was furious, anger pulsing through his face. His hands were on her hips and hazel eyes narrowed, giving him an almost predatory, feral look. “I told you to behave and you did the exact opposite when you ran into the crowd. Do you know what happens to naughty little girls, you little shit?”

“Naughty little girls get punished,” she guessed in a feeble voice, pulling her knees close to her chest and eyes watering. “They get punished for their misbehavior?”

Smirking, Abel nodded. "And do you know how I am going to punish you, little brat?" he pressed, making his way towards her as she backed up until she was pressed against the headboard. "What punishment would be good enough for a child who keeps misbehaving even after I have been giving her many times to adjust her behavior."

In a sniffle, she responded. “Give them a warning.” Hope rang in her voice as she blinked her watery eyes. “Giving a warning and stern talking to them? I-i-its been proven, from what I know, that using violence on someone can cause hostility and a fragile bond between their caregivers if they lay a hand on them, Grandfather.”

Shifting to sit up taller, Luz dared to raise her head, seeing amusement and disgust bubble to her caregiver’s cold surface. Grinding his teeth and standing up taller, she knew that she spoke wrongly. There would be no warning or stern lecture. Instead, violence and terror were calling out to her, welcoming her to her new way of life.

“Naughty girls get punished. Naughty girls get no supper. Naughty girls get beatings,” he taunted as she prepared to scream and throw herself onto the floor. If she moved fast enough, there was a possible chance of alerting Edric, Emira, or Amity of her being in danger. “And with you being a naughty girl, you will be getting all three.”

“Gr-“ Did she deserve this? Was she such a terrible person that she karma was catching up to her? Then, for the first time ever, Luz realized everything she had put people through. She had always caused Eda to be taken in by demon poachers; Lilith barely having time to work as Emperor’s Covenness; King losing his stuffed rabbit; Willow, Gus, and Amity becoming outcasted for associating with her. Was this her punishment for being such a bad person?

“Shove it, Luzella! I know how of a naughty girl that you have been. Between you running away from the summer camp that Camilia sent you and forcing herself upon people who don’t want you, you have this a long time coming. Now as a big girl, are you going to take your punishment willingly or will I have to force you to sit still?”

Covering her ears and freezing on the bed, Luz began to shake, too stressed to properly process what her grandfather said. But, much to relief, there was one part she almost certainly knew what was wrong. Would that be enough to convince her granddaughter she fully wasn’t a naughty girl?

“I d-didn’t force myself onto anyone,” she began hurriedly, seeing her grandfather come closer. “Mama and Tia Lil-“ She got caught off. Abel Noceda wasn’t in the mood to deal with any of her half pleas to sway the punishment in her favor."

“Stop trying to over your ass with fantasies. Those women, who may have been claiming to love you, just kept you around because they didn’t have a choice. They never loved you, Luzella, and never will.”

Once again, Luz recalled her train of thought from earlier. Was she that bad of a person?

“ _Why do you think they let you return to the Human Realm so easily_ ,” a dark voice in the back of her mind taunted. “ _They were just biding by their time to send you home and celebrate once you were gone._ ”

Numbness creeping through her, Luz felt sick with horror and terror as she struggled to process what was realized. Mouth growing dry, she glanced desperately around the room, searching out the familiar shape of Owlbert and Sapphire. Eda and Lilith almost always knew when she was in danger and set their Palasmon to protect her. But there was no sight of them. Instead it drove the knowledge of her being unwanted and a burden deeper into her mind. 

Frozen in place, the eleven-year-old felt her chest tighten, causing her gasp and wheeze. It was a struggle to breath. Desperate, she looked for a way out. For a way to escape the tense, overbearing atmosphere that fell on her. Seeing no one coming to her aid and her senses telling her to leave, she sprang off of the bed and hurried across the room, focusing on the red and cold patterned carpet flashing out of the corners of her eyes. Unfortunately, she barely made a couple steps before her grandfather, turning away from the bed and stalking over to her, seized ahold of fistful of her hair, forcing her to stay in place.

“Oh, you aren’t going anywhere,” he said, digging his nails into her hair, causing her to whimper as she stood on the tip of her toes, trying to lessen the pressure. “You aren’t going to escape and go disturb the other guests. After being a naughty girl and losing our trusts, you will be losing your right to go anywhere except for your bedroom and school.”

“Let me go! Let me go!” Luz writhed and kicked against the grip of his grandfather, shocked by how strong he was. “Let me go, Grandfather! Please just let me go!” Sobs began to wrack her body as she tried to fall limp, hoping to sow her caregiver down. If she stalled long enough, there could still be hope her mother’s sister, Lilith, Eda, or any of the Blight children riding them rose. “I-I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry,” she wailed as she rolled across the floor, head throbbing from impact. “I’m sorry, Grandfather. P-p-please have mercy!”

“You won’t be going anywhere,” Abel said, pinning her to the floor as she screamed and kicked. “You will be taking this beating like a big girl and any more after it.”

Panic shot through her as she began to realize there was no escape. With her being pinned to the floor and her grandfather’s knee in her back, she wasn’t strong enough to break free. The only sound that could be heard was her panicked panting and the low, dark voice from before. 

_‘This is exactly what you deserve after being a burden on society and others around you,’_ the dark voice laugh sadistically at her. _‘Over the last five months must have been torture to Edalyn and Lilith Clawthorne that they must have be celebrating and eating all the good food now that you are gone. It is not surprising that your grandfather and aunt realized just how pathetic and naughty you really are. You can doubt it but the true feelings of others will always come to the surface once the haze is gone.’_

“Noo. Nooo. NOO!” Squeezing her eyes shut and flinching against the pain at her side, Luz refused to believe it. “Eda and Lilith love me. They were sad to see me leave!”

_‘Can you be so sure? How do you know that they were putting up a façade until you left? Edalyn was very good at keeping her past hidden until she turned into a beast and almost killed you. How don’t you know she was faking it when captured by the Emperor, saying she loves you, and allowing you to call her “Mama”. And Lilith never showed you any affection or allow you to call her Tia in public until she found out you were leaving. Are you so dense that you can’t see the answer when its right in front of you?’_

The voice laughed at her mockingly. Between the shocking discovery and the cruel laughter, Luz found no strength to fight against the onslaught of blows to her father. There was no energy to keep going when she realized how diluted she was. It wasn’t hard to see how true the voice was. Lilith, while saying she loved her, wasn’t openly affectionate to her until days before the first try of the portal and Eda was hesitant on saying she loved her back in the castle, almost six months prior, when Luz told her. But still, she still didn’t want to accept what was being whispered. If she did, how would the eleven-year-old manage to deal with it? How could someone recover from being a stain on the very people she called her La Familia.

How would she deal with knowing Edalyn and Lilith only put up with her because they had to? How could she keep going when she realized that her friends may have stayed with her out of remorse and pity? How did she deal with the knowledge the only family she had was her Mami and she was being kept away from her? Or how does she deal with the emotional pain of facing guardians like Amity's parents with no support? What if, in the future, she cracked and became like Amity before she changed?

Would she ever recover from Grandfather Abel Noceda and Auntie Gabrielle Noceda, and be her true self again? But, after she was old enough to go to college, how would she be able to recover?

***

Gabrielle hated when her father, Abel Noceda, drank until he lost his sense between right or wrong, leading him to making mistakes that he would later regret. It had been his drinking that caused her little sister, Camilia, to leave almost twelve years ago. So, when her father sent her out to get ice and something from the vending machine, it was worrying to her.

Placing the change and a Hershey chocolate bar into her pocket, she made her way back to their hotel room, worried of what she was about to find. If her father was really drunk, it had led to bad things. One of those moments was the end of their relationship with Camilia, and she feared it would be the same with Luz. If he drank very little than he was in the between area where he may have confused Luz as a younger version for her mother and want to punish her for running away. “Dammit,” she groaned as she fished her keys out from her coat pocket. “Why do I have to worry about the past, and the actions of my father?”

Swiping the card and placing the box of ice on the table, Gabrielle slipped her coat off, half expecting to find Abel drunkenly collapsed in the desk chair and Luz, while sniffling, staring at the television with a random channel on as they waited for her to return. Once she returned, they would leave to go to the Chinese place a few blocks away to eat the evening meal before it grew too late. Instead the room was empty, and dark except for the small desk lamp. The only evidence of this being her room was their suitcase and Luz’s stuffed rabbit discarded on the ground.

“Luz?’ She approached the closet, fingers pressing into the holder. Opening, she peered inside and found only one coat hanger. Turning around and approaching the bathroom, Gabrielle gently rapped on the door. “Luz, darling,” she called. “Are you in there?”

Moving the desk chair to the side, she placed a hand on the door but hesitated. If her eleven-year-old niece was in the bathroom she must be using I, making her safe and sound. And if her father wasn’t here, Abel must have gone out to look for her. There was nothing to wor-. She froze, gasping. “Luz,” she said, seeing her laying limp on the ground and a small puddle of blood by her head. “Luz, darling!”

From where she stood, she didn’t look hurt except the puddle of blood but moving closer her worry turned to anger. Her shoulder, upon further investigation, was swollen and possibly pulled out of her socket while the towel beneath her head as soaked in blood. Large bruises sprouted across her neck and upper arms. But the most startling to her labored whimpers. It sounded like she had a fractured or broken rib.

Careful not to anger the wound of her head, she rolled her onto her side, digging her phone out of her pocket. Turning the flash light on, she shined it onto her face. Her eyes that were once bright and filled with life was now dull and glassy. She seemed unfocused as she began to stir, barely reacting when her eyes fluttered open and close. Her dress, once a beautiful pure white, was now a dull copper brown with large white patches. Beside her, in almost a death like grip, was her necklace, pressing heavily into her palm, almost breaking the skin.

“Luz, darling?” There was no response, not even a whimper. She just lay there, curled up tight into a ball. _What did her father do to her?_

She crouched for a few moments, unsure of what of what to do. Part of her wanted to take Luz, leave, and never come back to keep her face, but another part, the more rational, reasoned that if she disappeared with his granddaughter, he would use his connections to find them. He had made it very clear that he was going to raise Luz to replace her mother and bring new wealth to the family. Cleaning

With a deep, and regretful side, she settled next to her after retrieving her first aid kit from her luggage. Couching next to her and carefully sitting her up, she began to set to work. With a cautious and tender pants, she wrapped a piece of sterile gauze around her head. Once full bandaged, she found her niece leaning against her and face no longer flushed with tears. Instead, she curled into her side and pressed her feverish head on her shoulder, sighing softly.

Standing up and glancing back at the puddle of blood, she ginger lifted her up, careful of her injuries. Approaching the hotel bed, she laid her down. Tucking the blankets around her, she approached the bathroom, setting to cleaning the blood up before it set into the floor. Once it was cleaned up and towels replaced with new ones, she slipped into the bed beside her, attending to stay awake and read until her father arrived home.

Her father, Abel Noceda, didn’t arrive home that night.

***

The next morning, Luz woke up with a groan, body aching and head throbbing. For a moment, she tried to recall what happened when everything flooded her mind. For a brief moment, everything faded until a sharp, thumping pain came from her head. Tears coming to her eyes, she gasped, voice lost to the pain. From beside her, a sleepy groan greeted her as her auntie stirred, running her fingers through her long, black hair.

“Luz,” she gasped, relief in her voice. “How are you feeling? Do you want something to drink or eat?”

Wide eyed, she stared at her, unable to process her words. How did she explain how she felt? Achy, certainly. Terrified? She wasn’t in any danger and deserved the beating that she received. But sitting in front of her aunt, she felt guarded and tense like she was about to be struck.

Yesterday, after the appointment, had been rough. Still, she didn’t understand what she did. Her grandfather had beaten her and called her a little shit because she tried to find her friends and wanted to go home with them, and now revealed the truth of Lilith and Eda raising her. They had said they loved her. Did they think she also a burden and a waste of space? If they thought that and lied repeatedly about her, did that make her nothing but a stain on the Clawthorne name?

“Luz! Hey, darling, it’s okay.” Gabrielle crouched in front of her, patient, calm, and reassuring. Her comforting gaze amidst her meltdown began to center her. “Focus on my voice, Luz. Focus on me. Don’t focus on what happened.”

“I don’t feel good,” she confessed before burying her face into her blanket, body shaking. Settling down beside her, Gabrielle placed a comforting hand on her back, comforting her the best she could.

A few hours later, after taking some pain medicine, Gabrielle helped Luz take a quick shower and get dressed. When it came time for lunch, it was decided that she and her would be going to the Chinese buffet a few blocks away. Her worry from the previous night returned when her niece picked at her lunch and turned down ice cream, causing her to wonder if there was something more that was bothering her but didn’t press. She had a sinking feeling that Luz wouldn’t know how to put her emotions into words. After a promise of renting a movie or two later that evening, they returned to the hotel room. Once telling the hotel they were staying for another week, she settled down with Luz, wanting to call her sister in a chance to perk up her niece.

Picking the landline up and putting in Camilia’s phone number, she took a deep breath, holding it between them. It only rang two times before she answered, voice filling the room.

“Luz?” came the concerned voice of her mother. “Are you okay, BeBe? It’s been three days since you last spoke to me.”

“Si, Mami,” she answered dully, voice sullen. “Grandfather and Auntie Gabrielle has kept me busy that last few days. But Tia is helping me call you, Mami so I can speak to you. B-b-but I’m doing okay,” she explained quickly, not wanting to become a burden to her mother too. Nearly choking a sob, Luz bit her lip, not able to keep the tears back. “We got Chinese and are going to be renting some movies tonight. J-just like we do on weekends.”

“Are you sure you’re okay, Mija?” Her mother sounded worried, stress sinking into her voice. “If you need me to come and see you, I will be out there within hours, BeBe. Just tell me, and I will be there.”

“You don’t have to worry, Mami,” she assured her, sighing softly. “Grandfather and Tia took me to another state for a doctor’s appointment. I’m just a bit tired, there is nothing to worry about.”

Taking the phone from her once she saw her eyelids beginning to droop, Gabrielle settled closer to the phone. “Good afternoon, Camilia,” she said, keeping her voice neutral. “It has been a long time, sister.”

“What did you do to her, Gabby,” her little sister snarled, voice cold. “What did you do to my Mija? She has never sounded so upset and worried before. Tell me what you did to her before I call CPS on you.”

“Whatever the condition of Luz is in does not concern you,” she warned, sitting up straight. “She is in our custody and is under our care. Until further notice and if the social worker gives permission for visitation, you will not be speaking of this again.”

“Gabby! Gab-“ The line went dead.

Placing the phone back onto its hanger, she turned to her niece. “Stay here, Luz,” she ordered without glancing at her. “I have to go and find Father. He must have drunken himself to sleep and slept somewhere until he was hungover.”

“I want to talk to-“ Luz trailed off, tears bubbling in her eyes. “Mami was talking to me. She was worried, Tia. W-w-why did you hang up on her?”

“She wasn’t doing anything to help your recovery,” Gabrielle explained as she went over to the coat rack. Grabbing her coat and slipping it on, she zipped it up. “But stay here and rest, Mija. But I hopefully shouldn’t be gone more than an hour or two. If I’m gone around supper, just warm up leftovers in the microwave.”

“Tia,” she cried, freezing where she sat, a hand reaching out to grab her. “P-please don’t leave. I don’t want to be alone.”

Pausing to slip her phone into her pocket and her spare cash, the twenty-eight-year-old walked back across the room. Pressing a kiss into her forehead, she forced her to lay back down onto the bed. “Get some sleep, Mija,” she crooned like she was a young infant. “I hopefully wouldn’t be that long.” Tucking her in, Gabrielle turned around and left, locking the door behind her.

Once she was left alone, Luz grabbed the phone, pressing the recall button. Laying back down, she rested her head on the pillow, listening longingly as the ringing went on, causing tears to build in her eyes and fall down her cheeks. Blinking them away, she hung the phone up and clutched onto her stuffed rabbit.

With her aunt hanging up on her aunt, her realization of being a burden, and her failure to be a good granddaughter, Luz felt terrible. She was just a bad person.


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning. There is a panic attack.

“Mija? Are you up there?”

Luz, pausing at the top of the stairs, peered over the railing that led up to the three bedrooms, her’s, the guests and her Mami’s. Seeing her Mami, dressed in her nursing uniform, at the bottom, she waved a hand. “I’m just grabbing something from my bedroom, Mami,” she said, forcing a bright, cheerful smile. “Will we be opening presents soon?”

“Soon as you come downstairs, love,” Camilia said, smiling softly. “Gracelyn isn’t going to be able to hold Wilder back if you take much longer. The poor thing looks like he is about to explode any moment, BeBe You may want to move faster and quicker if you want your presents unopened.”

“It won’t take that long,” she promised as the eleven-year-old disappeared into her bedroom. Crouching down beside her bed, she pulled out a bag from underneath. While back in the Demon Realm, she had made presents for once she returned home to give to her Mother, her mother’s girlfriend, and her son, Wilder. Settling the bag in front of her, she pulled out the wrapped packages and placed them out in front of her. “I will be down in ten minutes,” the preteen promised as she heard the loud, complaints of Wilder from below.

Having Gracelyn and Wilder over was a new experience for the preteen. While she had drawn close to her mother’s girlfriend and her son, today would be the first official holiday spent with them. Gracelyn and her mother had only been dating for two years, and only drew very close when she disappeared during the summer. With how close they had become, Luz felt like she gained another mother and a little brother. Two more people who wouldn’t see her as a burden or a waste of space.

‘Or you hope,’ the cruel voice mocked.

“No. No. Gracelyn loves me, and so does Wilder,’ she said with a shake of her head. Today was Christmas Eve, it was not the time to let her doubts win her over. There was no need to worry the others when she could just deal with it herself but it was still hard to push out of her mind.

“Take your time,” her mother’s girlfriend, Gracelyn, responded at the end of the stairs, pulling her back to the present. “Wilder can learn some patience. Do you need help bringing anything down, Honey?”

“I got it,” she called, shoulders slumping when her footsteps led back to the living room. Once she realized she was alone, Luz rested her back against her mattress, careful not to anger the bandages around her head. With it only being three days since the incident at the hotel, this was the first time she felt any kind of happiness and joy. Being with her Mami was the only time she felt like she was wanted. The only time she could be herself and not worry if was being a burden.

Later tonight, after Gracelyn and Wilder had gone home, Grandfather and Tia Gabby would be coming to pick her up. They were going to midnight mass and were taking her with them. Her Mami was supposed to have her until New Years but they had did something to lessen the scheduled visit. Once the mass was complete, she would be returning with them back to the manor where their approved gifts would be waiting for her to open.

"Honey?" The gentle rap of Gracelyn at her door caused her to turn and face the direction of the hallway. "Is something wrong, Luz? You have been upstairs for a while."

"Nothing, Meme," she said, settling on the edge of the bed with a sigh, elbows resting on her knees. "I don't want to worry, Mami, right now. She's has enough to worry about as it is. It wouldn’t seem fair to add more worry with it being Christmas, too.”

"Is your head hurting you, Baby?" Walking across the room and stepping over the crudely wrapped presents, Gracelyn settled next to her. "Do you want me to get you some Advil or anything? If it’s really bad, Camilia and I can take you to the emergency room. Did you even get checked over by a doctor when you got hurt, Baby?”

"I took some aspirin not that long ago," she said, melting into her grip with a contented look. "I don't want to go back home with Abuelo and Tia. I hate living with them. When can I live with Mami, Wilder, you, Meme, again?"

"It takes a while, Baby," Gracelyn offered, gently petting the top of her head, wary of her bandage. "I was surprised by how quick she managed to get you for unsupervised visits as she did. But you get to come stay with us every other weekend, and Wilder, while be only seven, attends the same campus as you. So if I'm ever campus to see him, I will stop by to see you, Baby. You might be able to see Wilder a few times a week since your lunch crosses over. Doesn’t that sound nice, Luz?"

"Wait! What?" Sitting up and staring at her mother's girlfriend, Luz's face scrunched up. "How will Wilder and I be in the same school, Meme? Or have the same lunch? Isn't Wilder only in second grade?"

"Well, turns out, Baby...” Gracelyn drew her future step-daughter close, squeezing her shoulders gently. "Wilder didn't just take after you with his imagination but also he seem to be a carbon copy with his smarts. He will be joining the 6ths graders while you attend 10th grade, right, Luz?"

"Of course, Meme." Smiling, Luz got to her feet. "We should head downstairs before Mami and Wilder come looking for us. Or at least before Wilder starts opening presents before I get to put mine under the tree."

"Let's go," Gracelyn offered, picking up the three presents for her. "I don't want to keep Camilia waiting that long."

Following after her future step-mother, Luz closed her door. Just moments after, when Luz was settled in between her two mothers, and out of sight of any uncovered window, a familiar speckled owl and alabaster raven, fluttered around the house. Pausing a moment to cackle at each other, they flew off, missing the very person they wanted to find.

***

Back in the Demon Realm, in the middle of Winter Solstice, Edalyn Clawthorne and her older sister, Lilith Clawthorne, were worried. It had been a month and half since the bouncing and ambitious Luz Noceda had left from their care and returned to the Human Realm. While they expected radio silence for first three weeks or so they had at least expected Sapphire or Owlbert to return with some news of seeing her with her mother, Luz Noceda. But after many searching attempts the area between and around her cabin and house, they had come up empty. Something felt off. There was something very wrong.

Even during the time of celebration and jubilance, Eda had found no strength to put on a forced act like Lilith, her older sister.. How could she be happy when there was a chance Luz was in danger? Or hide her worry for her missing child? It was just too hard. Too hard to hide her true feelings when instead, she felt like exploding.

“Edalyn..” Her mother, Fantasia Clawthorne, approached her, holding a glass of red Mooberry wine. “Why don’t you come and join us at the table? You can have a cup of wine if you want.”

Glancing at her mother, the seventeen-year-old turned to face back out of the window, fingers tapping on the window still. “I’m fine, Mother,” she said, golden and gray eye scanning the scenery to find Owlbert and Sapphire. “I want to be alone for a while. However, I will join you in a few minutes. Can you ask Lil to save me a seat beside her?”

“I’m not leaving, my daughter alone when she is upset.” Fantasia settled on the velvet bench beside her, careful not to spill her wine. “Are you worrying about, Luz? She’s back in the Human Realm, right?”

Eda sighed, resting her hands on her lap. “Yes, Mother,” she answered, starting to tap her foot impatiently. “It’s been six weeks since she went to back the Human Realm to live with her Mother, her mother’s girlfriend and the little boy of her mother’s girlfriend..”

“She is safe.” Taking a sip of her wine, Fantasia took a moment to collect her thoughts. “Isn’t her being safe better than not knowing where she is at?”

“Mot-“

“Something is wrong,” Lilith replied firmly as she approached her family members, holding a glass of wine tightly in her slender fingers. “Sapphire and Owlbert returned and came back with the same results. There was no sign that Luz had been in her bedroom for a while. Besides the covers being a bit scrunched up and things on the floor, nothing was disturbed.”

“If the covers are disturbed, than she must be using her room,” Fantasia said in confusion.

“You don’t know, Luz, Mother,” Lilith answered. “With a hurricane like Luz, her room, her one form of privacy, is never clean. What Sapphire and Owlbert reported is unnatural for her. It would only make sense that Luz hadn’t been in her room for a while. That is only thing that makes sense.”

“What?” Edalyn stood up, glancing at Lilith who also looked worried after finally process the information. “Have you had them check around the cabin? The small path that leads to her house, Lil?”

“Two times over,” Lilith responded, placing the glass onto the window still, tortoise eyes dark and distant. “While, we can’t look for her right now, we need to start preparing for when the time comes.”

While she wanted to protest, Eda knew that her older sister was right. It would take time to get everything they needed if they were to stay for several weeks in the Human Realm. There were the process of Lilith taking a month or two off for a “family vacation”.

“Soon,” she said with a soft sigh. “We need to leave soon, Lilith.”

“Soon,” Lilith agreed, pulling her close. “Very, very soon.”

***

“Time to open presents! Time to open presents!” Wilder Jonas jumped excitedly around the crowded living room, pure delight on his face. “Can I open one first, Mama? I want to open one of the big ones!”

Settling down on the couch next to her girlfriend, Camilia, Gracelyn blinked, amusedly. “Give us a second to settle down, Wilder,” she said as Luz, to the side, was arranging her three presents underneath the tree. “Luz is still placing her presents beneath the tree, and hasn’t settled down. Once she is seated, Camilia will hand out presents.”

Pouting, Wilder sank to the floor at the feet of his mother.

Rolling her eyes, Luz frowned at her crumpled and second hand wrapping paper. Back at the Isle, there was no wrapping paper so she had to use whatever Owlbert brought back. With it mainly being old and discarded homework assignments, she had used the almost empty sticker set she was given after learning her first spell by Eda to make it somewhat nice. Hopefully, while not meant for Christmas, they would like what she made.

Once it looked like it was good enough, the eleven-year-old pulled away from the tree and went over to her Mami sat. Settling down on the floor next to her Mami’s legs, she almost hissed in complaint as Wilder launched himself onto her. “Merry Christmas,” he cried, giving her a tight hug, not noticing how stiff she had gotten. “I missed you so much, Luz! Are you staying with Mama now?”

Resisting the urge to shudder or push him off, she gritted her teeth. Had she been this bad when first meeting Eda, than later Lilith? Was it her sugary sweet and annoying behavior that drove them to wanting to get rid of her? Would Wilder, her Meme’s son, be the thing to drive her away from Mami and her when they could no longer stand her presence any longer? Or would Mami abandon her like Lilith, Eda, and her friends?

“Mija?” Camilia was now crouched in front of her once she came back to the present. With a thumb, she was wiping tears off of her cheeks. “Are you in pain, BeBe? If you’re not feeling good, you can lay down until supper time and we can open presents later.”

“But, Mami-“ began Wilder in a whine.

“I’m okay, Mami.” Smiling brightly, she blinked her eyes. “Can we open presents now?”

“Yes!” Wilder plopped down onto the floor as his mother got to her feet. Going over to the tree, she pulled out two packages. Giving Wilder the larger one, she gave Luz the smaller, bulging package. Watching as he tore the wrapping paper off and pushing the box onto the side, the boy’s face grew bright. “Voltron!” Turning around to give his mother a hug and playing with a few stray pieces, a “bonus present” that came with it, it was Luz’s turn to open her’s.

Turning to her own paper, she found a small package wrapped in green and red paper. Compared to the size, it felt heavy in her hands. Settling it onto the floor between her legs, Luz carefully opened it. Scraping the tape off of the side and pulling the lid off, a smile grew over her face. Inside was the sixth, seventh, and eighth books from The Good Witch Azura series. Wrapped around it was a plush, blanket, bearing the familiar colors of her made up character that resembled herself.

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” Launching herself at Gracelyn and Camilia, Luz wrapped her arms around them. She hadn’t been expecting to get anything besides clothes for this Christmas since she outgrew her old own in height but too baggy to wear. “Thank you, Mami. Thank you Meme!”

“It’s nothing, love,” Gracelyn said, gently patting the back of her head. “Now do you want us to open our presents that you got for us?”

Getting up and going over to the tree, she grabbed the three presents. Giving a My Little Pony sticker covered wrapped package to Gracelyn, she took a step back, wanting to see her open the present before giving the other two out.

“This is heavy,” Gracelyn commented as she took the box. “What did you get me, love?”

“Open it,” she said, smiling again. “And you will find out, Meme.”

Getting her cup of Eggnog to the side and placing the present onto her lap, she tore it open. Quickly cleaning up the paper and setting it to the side, Gracelyn opened the box. “W-what?” The woman pulled out a long, red piece of fabric with various buttons and feathers attached on the scruffier part.

“It’s a blanket,” said Luz. “I put buttons and other things that I was able to find.”

“Yeah,” murmured Gracelyn, fingering a few black buttons with a browning at the edges. “I can see that, love.”

“I remember saying how you liked the color red and liked homemade gifts. So I thought making this for you would be something that you could put on the wall or use to sleep with at night.”

Gracelyn gave a mute nod, glancing at her girlfriend, who also shared the worried look. While they loved getting homemade gifts from their children, the thought of their eldest, running through trash and picking up pieces of unknown origin, worried her. “I will make sure to place it over my couch in my apartment,” she said quickly before Luz’s feelings could be hurt.

“I thought you would like it.” Luz gave an excited bounce, nearly running into Wilder. “Ma-. Eda and Lilith helped me with cleaning the things before I used them to make Meme’s present.”

“Eda?” Wilder echoed, confused. “Lilith? Who are they?”

“Some people I was staying with before I could come home,” she said with a shrug. “They didn’t want me so I shouldn’t matter now that I am home now, Wilder.”

“Why did they keep you so long?” Wilder’s blue eyes, filled with curiosity, stared at her. “Or why do you talk about them? Aren’t they bad guys like Mama and Mami have said?”

“No!” Luz bristled, hand wrapping around the Clawthorne pendant. Even though she no longer felt like a Clawthorne, having the charm with her brought her a sense of comfort. “The true person who kept me from returning from home was a very cruel and atrocious man named Belos.”

“Wh-“

“Luz,” Camilia cut her off, seeing the panicked look on her daughter’s face. “How about I open my present now, Mija.”

Holding out the pack, small and colored in animal stickers, Luz gave an excited bounce. This one had been the hardest and longest to do. She hoped her Mami liked it. “Open it,” she pleaded, coming to rest on the arm of the couch. “Open it, Mami!”

Her mother gently and tenderly tided the shoe laces, in replace of a ribbon, and prided off the duct tape, placing it on her lap. Removing the paper, her Mami held up wrinkled and double folded papers held together by a faded, purple bow. Removing the bow and unfolding the papers, she flipped through the pages, looking for some title or anything to explain what it was. But there was no title or description, instead multi-colored lettering that reminded her of her daughter’s rushed handwriting when she was excited or wanting to get something on the page before she forgot.

“Mija,” she began gently, placing the papers out of the way. “Much as I love the present, why give me used notebook papers.”

“That’s because, it’s a story that I wrote for you,” Luz explained. “I know you would want to know what I was at and doing during the entire time I was away. Since I didn’t have my laptop to type it up and my phone being too small, I wrote it down and put it together with a bow.” Her face fell as she realized something. “You don’t like it do you?”

“No! No! No!” Camilia forced on a smile, worry bubbling against her barrier. “It’s very thoughtful, Mija. Later tonight, once Wilder and you are in bed, Gracelyn and I will read it together.”

“I-I-I can make Gracelyn and you something else,” she said softly, voice trembling as she sank to the ground next to Wilder. “There wasn’t a lot of things to use to make presents where I was staying. I thought you would like what I got you.”

“We were just shocked and surprise, love,” Gracelyn assured her as she sat her blanket aside and allowed her soon to-be step-daughter onto her lap, rubbing comforting circles in her back. “Camilia and I are just worried of the setting and environment you were staying in for the five months you disappeared. With these gifts, our worries seem justified.”

“Can we talk about this later?” asked Luz. “I want Wilder to open his present before Grandfather and Auntie come to collect me for the evening. I spent a lot of time on Wilder’s present. I think he is going to like it.”

“I think that one of us should open Wilder’s instead of him,” Camilia said after sharing a glance with Gracelyn. “Not that you would try to hurt him, we don’t want you to accidently cause him harm, sweetie.”

From where he sat and before anyone could make a move, Wilder ripped the paper, a simple black circling patterned, and threw it to the side. Brightening, he was greeted with the sight of a garbage bag wrapped box. With the help from Luz, the garbage bag was pulled away, leaving nothing but a long box that made a rattling sound as the seven-year-old shook it in his short arms.

“Do you need help getting the bow untied?” Gracelyn stretched her legs and moved a few steps before settling down behind her son. “I think you overdid it, love. Four knots maybe a bit too much.”

Taking the steak knife that Camilia had retrieve, she cut the bow off, throwing it to the side. Opening the top, Wilder pulled out a sword, compact and silver. At the base of the hilt, there was a red button. Hitting the button, Wilder was greeted with a slower paced version of the Voltron theme song. Further into the box, after the confetti paper was removed, hand copied coloring pages that Eda and Lilith had pulled from her cellphone and placed them onto tracing paper. They were drawn in and appeared like the canon version of themselves.

“I love them! I love them!” Wilder gripped onto the tag board posters as he raised the sword into the air, swinging it around. “I can be Lance now when he controls the red lion!”

“You recorded and rewired the sward to make it personal,” Camila realized after seeing wiring circling to the button, covered by duct tape.

“Lilith helped me finish the writing,” explained the eleven-year-old. “For the posters, they were handmade. I couldn’t use copic markers like I normally would with an art piece but used whatever I could get my hands on.” Settling back down, they began to finish opening presents. There wasn’t much more packages under the tree. There were two more for Wilder and three more for Luz.

It wasn’t until the last present that Luz began to grow excited again. This was her biggest one and the way Mami and Meme looked, she knew it was something special.

Placing the package on the floor behind her, she began to scrape the tape off, putting it into the trash pile that had gathered in between Wilder and her. Pulling one of the corners of the wrapping paper away, her smile grew to a frown, inside, wrapped in plastic, where several articles of clothing and various other Good Witch Azura merchandise.

Normally, the sight of so many Good Witch Azura items would make her squeal in excitement and jump up and down. But now, after everything she had gone through in the Demon Realm, had changed or dampened her enthusiasm for any clothing besides blankets of her favorite book series. It was almost too painful to look at her gifts from Mami and Meme.

“Open them, Mija,” Camilia pressed gently, not noticing the strained grimace on her face. “Gracelyn and I saved up for months to get this limited edition present for you.”

Straining to smile and fighting back at the pulsing in her ears, she managed, “Thank you, Mami, Mama,” in a whisper as she begins to pull out each item and laid them out before her. Placing the box to the side of her, she began to go through what she received.

The first few items were various props that she could use for cosplaying or dressing up to act out scenes if she wanted to. It was the second to last item that got her. Picking it up, a midnight cloth item that unraveled into a cloak. It was an exact replica of Azura’s cloak that she wore when facing against her enemy, Prince Hexterite, during the end of the fifth book.

“I know how you were saving all our allowances, babysitting money, and grade money for the cloak, so Gracelyn, a few of my co-workers, and I pitched in to get you one of the very first made,” Camila said with a smile. “We had it made for you since you have been through so much, Mija, and deserved a nice present.”

Hands shaking once it was hanging out in front of her, Luz froze, head spinning.

“Now you can be real witch,” Wilder piped in innocently.

The second the words left her younger brother’s mouth, Luz sprang alive. Tearing out of the living room and dashing up the stairs, she slammed the door behind her, clicking the lock in place. Slipping into the clocet and covering her ears, she rocked, tears spilling down her face.

**“SAY IT! SAY YOU’RE NOT A WITCH!”**

_Rap._

_Rap._

**“And look at those years! Is she human?” there was a cackle, echoing through her cramped, dark space. “Where did you even find one of those?”**

Rap.

**“Are you a poster? A nerd? No. I know. You’re a bully, Luz!”**

_Rap._

**“** **To think that any student of yours would be capable of doing anything but create chaos... Eda, take your student and leave! You are both banned from this campus!”**

_Rap. Rap._

**“Leave, human…”**

_Rap. Rap._

**“….Edalyn is finally with her real family…”**

_Rap. Rap. Rap._

**“…Her Real Family…”**

_Rap. Rap. Rap._

**“Go Back to your world…”**

_Rap. Rap. Rap._

**“This one’s ours..”**

_Rap. Rap. Rap._

**“** **Alright kid, listen to me. I'm going away, and I don't know if I can bounce back this time. Watch over King, remember to feed Hooty.” Eda’s voice filled her head, broken and exhausted.**

_Rap. Rap. Rap._

**“Please,” she had sobbed, coughing loudly, unable to breath. “No!”**

_Rap. Rap. Rap._

**“And Luz, thank you for being in my life.”**

“Move Cami,” came the distant yell of her Meme and Mami. “I’ll replace it later!” With a sharp kick, the crunch and slamming of the door onto the floor still didn’t outweigh the pressure on her chest, or the heavy weight on her shoulders.

**“I love you, Eda.”**

**“I love you too, kiddo.”**

Luz couldn’t breathe. It felt like she was facing Emperor Belos again, being pinned and him refusing to let her breath until she handed over the portal, sneering if her life was truly worth for something simple as the portal. The eleven-year-old didn’t realize she had curled up on her side, pressing her face into her cloak and buried her necklace into her cheek until the darkness of her hiding spot was dissipated and hands are grabbing her. Terrified, and thinking it was Emperor Belos, she squirmed and wiggled. Between pained wheezes, she cried, “Eda! Lilith! Mama! Tia!”

“Mija. Mija...” She’s being carried like she was an infant as the room swam in her watery gaze. Just as she begun to adjust to the circling movement, she was placed onto the bed. Her Mami curled up around her while Gracelyn gently takes the cloak and the necklace from her. With a blanket over them and ushering her son out, she marched downstairs after hearing that Abel and Gabrielle was there. “Mija, I need you to breath, BeBe,” Camila whispered, rubbing her daughter’s, shaking back. “I need you to follow my breathing, Luz.”

Luz, still squirming, whimpered weakly. “Mama,” she sniffled, blinking open her watery hazel-brown eyes. “I want Mama.”

“I’m right here, Mija,” reassured Camilia as she hummed softly, rubbing her back. “I’m here. Can you take a few short breaths for me? Take some breathes.”

Fighting against a sob and sniffles, the eleven-year-old drew in a pained breath. Shuddering and cringing, she exhaled. Even with her Mami there and her Meme acting like a guard dog, she still couldn’t push away the want, the need to see her Mama and Tia. Even if it was for them to tell her to go away and never returned, she needed them. They were the only ones who managed to calm her down before her asthma was triggered.

“Mama?” The worried face of Wilder appeared in her life of vision. “Is Luz going to be okay?”

“In a few minutes she will,” Camilia comforted him. “But Mijo, can you bring me her inhaler? It’s on her desk.”

Wilder gave a short, mute nod. Going over and picking it up, Camila took it.

“Deep breathe, Mija,” she whispered, shaking it and gently squeezing two puff so medicine into her airway.

“Mami,” she rasped after a second, feeling her chest lessen. “I don’t w-w-want to go with Abuelo and Tia.”

“You’re not going,” she promised, standing up. Picking her up, much like she was an infant, Camila began to walk down the steps with Wilder behind her. “Wilder, why don’t you watch some Christmas cartoons with Luz in the guest bedroom,” she said as she turned to her soon to be son. “Can you walk to the play room, Mija? Or do you want me to carry you there?”

“I can walk,” she mumbled, grabbing Wilder’s hand as they left the dining area.

With her daughter gone and Gracelyn getting more and more frustrated, Camilia turned around, bracing to face the very man who had forced her into a life of a single, teenage mother.

***

Four hours later, after a fight between her Abuelo and Mami, Luz found her sitting in a pew between her two guardians. Mass had been going for three hours now and was about to end. After Mass, they would linger for an half an hour to an hour to share coffee and cookies with the other visitors. During this, Abel had already told Luz she would be spending time with Sofia, Riku, and Amber. They were going to prepare her for when she started Spring Semester back at her old school.

“You will behave when visiting with your betrothed and friends, Luzella,” her grandfather warned as they began to follow the flow of the crowd to the dining hall. “After we are done with the meeting, we will return to the mansion than you will be able to open the gifts that we bought for you.”

“Yes, Abuelo,” she said with a tired smile. With a gently squeeze from her mother’s sister, the eleven-year-old went over to the table where the three people who despised her sat. Settling down next to Riku, she flinched as his arm wrapped around her shoulder. “H-h-how did your present opening go?” she asked skittishly, thumbing the smooth word of her Clawthorne pendant on her lap. “Did you get anything that you wanted?”

“I got mainly what is to be expected,” Sofia grumbled as she leaned back into her chair, running her fingers through her long, blue curls. “Papa got me an entire new wardrobe while my parents got me some useless makeup pallets. It was my older brother, who is stationed overseas at the moment, got me something I wanted. He knows that I want to be a teacher. He got me some books that start out on the basics of teaching and what is expected of one.”

“I got some new dresses,” Amber said with a sigh, wrinkling her noses. “But my nanny got me a puppy. She’s at my grandmother’s mansion currently. I stay with her during the school year so that she can make sure I am getting the proper education that a Roslyn can receive.”

“I wasn’t allowed to get anything,” Riku growled. “Instead, I was forced to buy a fucking ring.”

Confused and curious, the eleven-year-old cocked her head. “Why did you buy a ring for? Who is it for?”

“You will find out in any moment,” Riku said as the sound of glass hitting metal silenced the entire room.

“My associate, Abel Noceda, and I have an announcement to make.” Riku’s grandmother, Aoi Sato, stood beside her grandfather. “With the recent addition to his family and both our companies growing faster than we expected, we hav come to an agreement. Once my grandson is eighteen and Abel’s granddaughter is sixteen, they will be on in union upon taking their wedding vows and their marriage registered at the capital.”

“With them betrothed, their union will bring an emerger between our two companies,” Abel Noceda continued. “Together, with the Sato and Noceda family coming together to be one, we will be able to take bigger deals and go further than expected. A toast in the name of my granddaughter and future-grandson-in-law!”

“Cheers,” a few mumbled replies came while the others, shocked and horrified, remained silent.

Frozen and eyes widening, Luz barely reacted as Riku slipped a diamond ring onto one of her fingers. When first meeting Riku, Amber and Sofia, she didn’t know what the word “Betrothed” meant. But now with it explained in simpler terms, she understood.

In five years, she was set to marry, Riku Sato.

***

Several hours later, after opening birthday presents, Luz retired to her bedroom. Closing the door behind her and dropping her Christmas gifts onto the floor in front of her closet. Approaching her bed, she paused, seeing two wrapped packages on her pillow.

Settling on the edge of the bed, Luz grabbed the smaller one of the two. Finding nothing to reveal who they were from, she ripped the wrapping off. Eyes widening and gasping softly, the eleven-year-old fought back a squeal. In her hands, much to her delight, was her training wand and the lessens that her grandfather had taken from her during her first week. Placing that delicately to the side, she grabbed the bigger one. Not paying attention to the wrapping or the tag attached to the side. Unfolding it, tears sprang from her eyes. Amity’s jacket, the one she watched her grandfather haul out to the trash, was right in front of her. Seeing the name tag on the floor, she picked up, reading the writing.

“Feliz Navidad, mi querida sobrina.”

***

Back in the Demon Realm, after everyone had settled down for the evening, Eda sat back on the window seat. Holding a glass of bubbling Apple Cider and the stack of papers on her lap, the seventeen-year-old stared at the window, raising one hand to scratch Owlbert as he snuffled down in the crook of her neck. “I miss her too, buddy,” she agreed as he hooted, glancing down at the drawings that Luz had left for her as a celestial present. “But don’t worry, Owlbert. Soon, hopefully before Hexide starts up again, Luz will be here to rejoin her classmates.”

“We will start searching tomorrow,” Lilith said as she settled on the other side of the bench chair. “I already spoke to one of my assistances. They will be splitting up my tasks amongst themselves. I took three months off, and plan to spend every moment with Luz after we find her. If humans are like anything that my research suggested, we will have a long way uphill, Edalyn.”

“Once Luz is back in an environment where she is able to flourish, she will bounce back almost instantly,” the teenager reassured her older sister. “There will be no more trips to the Human Realm. She will remain where she belongs, and is loved.”

“She will have us, her friends, and Mother and Father,” Lilith added with a nod. “Luz will have an entire hoard of people who love her, and only want the best for her.”

“When she returns, she is going to be given her witches staff,” Eda said. “With everything she has been through, Luz deserves something special.”

“Or at last a rented one until she feels like she is ready to make her own,” Lilith added.

“Either way, she is going to go far.”

“Her and her friends, are going further than any of us or the current coven heads.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As mentioned towards the end of this chapter, Luz will be gaining her Palasmon towards the end of the book. With that in mind, I have been doing research on animals and what they mean. I have gotten down to four animals. I made a survey on Monkey Survey. If you could take a few seconds to choose your answer it will make it easier for me.
> 
> Link to survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/C338MMB

**Author's Note:**

> I think this is one of my longer chapters that I written as the starter and introduction to the fanfiction piece that I am working on. Quick note, while this may be canon divergent, I plan to include the lore we learned in the school and reference that things had happened in the past. The next chapter should be up sometime either on Monday evening or Tuesday afternoon, depending on how busy I get. 
> 
> Anyways, thank you for taking time out of your day to read this fic and comments are welcomed. The more comments I get, the sooner I push myself to finish and publish my chapters. 
> 
> -Dreamelilly018


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